Remembering Rachel: The Biography of Locke Cole
by Anrixan
Summary: Complete! The Locke and Rachel story. How they met, influenced each other, and learned that life can change in the blink of an eye...
1. A Spark That Relit The Fire

**Final Editing Finished on: November 24, 2005. (Locke's birthday!) The entire fic has been edited, so ignore all the author's comments about me changing certain things. I just neglected to delete the author's notes because they give me a good idea of when I posted the chapter and whatnot. Anyway, I hope you enjoy. **

**"Forever Rachel" from the Final Fantasy VI Original Soundtrack is one of my favorite pieces of all time by Uematsu. To me, it has more meaning than Aeris' Theme or anything else…The feelings, the emotion, the angst...** **The past of Locke and Rachel has never actually been fully explained, so I thought I would fill in some blanks and unanswered questions with my own imagination. (Not to mention my love for Locke! He is by far my favorite Final Fantasy character) I've had this idea for a fic for quite some time now, but it was only recently when my muse helped me out by getting my ideas out on paper.**

**This is the revamped version of this fic, even though I only had the first chapter up. As I continued writing it, I realized that I wanted to incorporate some things from the game in it, so making the story part "real time" (during the game) and part "flash back" (three years before the game starts) it flows a lot better. Therefore, the original chapter 1 is now chapter 2, and the new chapter 1 is in 'real time.' Although the rating is PG-13, it might eventually have to be changed to R. I hope you enjoy, and please comment. Thank you!**

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**1. The Spark That Relit the Fire**

_Ahh…good old Narshe! _Locke thought sarcastically as he entered the cold mines to make his way to Arvis' house. Growing up on the warmer western continent of the World of Balance made his skin unaccustomed to freezing temperatures, causing him to be rather uncomfortable. If it were up to him, he would've just taken the front entrance to the man's house, but Banon figured it was stealthier to go through the mines and through the back entrance. _No use arguing with Banon…It's not worth it…_

He shivered as the frigid air hit his face and whipped his hair around. _Dammit, I should've worn something a little warmer…_He looked down at his jeans, white shirt and blue vest and realized that it definitely was not weather appropriate. Although it was spring and the rest of the world was warm, Narshe was in the mountains, resulting in the artic weather no matter what time of the year it was.

The slip of paper that he held tightly in his hand contained the exact directions of how to get to Arvis' house, and he consulted them as he approached a bridge. By old habit, he stopped and inspected it first, making sure that there wasn't a chance that it would collapse on him. Even though the bridge looked solid and was in good condition, he sharply inhaled as he cautiously made his way across. Bridges made him nervous, he couldn't help it. _Ever since…_

Upon reaching the correct house, Locke shoved the piece of paper in his pants pocket and looked around to make sure he wasn't being followed. Everything looked clear, so he decided it would be okay to go in. He didn't bother to knock, so he instead tried the doorknob, finding that it was unlocked. He walked right in and saw an elderly man standing in the living room portion of the small home. The man impatiently huffed as he approached Locke.

"Took you long enough!" He exclaimed as Locke raised his eyebrows and fixed his blue bandana that crowned his head.

"Yeah, sorry," Locke apologized as he lowered his hands back to his side. "I'm not used to walking on a solid sheet of ice."

"Locke Cole, correct?" The man asked as he crossed his arms. Locke nodded his head and a smile crept on the older man's face. "How goes the robbing and plundering trade?"

Locke's jaw dropped at the insult and couldn't help but clench his fists in anger. "I _prefer_ the term treasure hunting!"

The older man laughed at Locke's reaction and couldn't help but mock him. "Ha! Semantic nonsense!" He replied as Locke waved a finger at him. He didn't appreciate traveling several miles on the swift current of the Lete River on a tiny raft to only be ridiculed, but there wasn't anything he could do about it but play nonchalant. Banon entrusted him with this mission, therefore he didn't want to protest.

"There's a _huge_ difference," he pointed out as he closely inspected the man and took a step closer. "Anyway, you were the one who sent for me?"

"Yeah, there's a girl I'd like you to meet."

Locke let out a chuckle as he crossed his arms in amusement. "Hold it, Banon didn't tell me this was a dating service assignment."

"And if it were, we would be having a big problem right now knowing that bachelorette number 1 is being hunted down by the Imperial army at this second in time," Arvis said with a smile. Locke's face wiped clear of all amusement as his eyes went wide.

"Wait a minute here," he exclaimed, running right up to Arvis. He was starting to put the threads of what Arvis was saying together with the rumors that he had heard from many people, and hoped that the ends didn't come together at the same place. "This better not have anything to do with that Magitek-riding, Imperial…witch…that everyone's been talking about lately!"

"Imperial troops are pursuing her as we speak," he nodded as he took a few steps away from Locke and headed toward the window. He moved the heavy curtain aside as he looked out to scan the town. Although it was very early in the morning, people were already moving around and working with the steam engines that ran the town. Narshe was a town that never slept. The older man let out a heavy sigh as he continued, slightly mumbling over the catastrophic situation that was taking place. "This town is no match for the Empire. Our independence can only be assured if we join forces with the Returners, an underground resistance movement."

"That's exactly the reason why I joined the Returners in the first place," Locke started as he sighed. "I have a problem with the Empire and all its 'goodness' that it's supposed to inspire. They're a bunch of bastards as far as I'm concerned. Which begs the question, what makes this girl any different than the rest of them?"

"That girl wasn't responsible for her actions," Arvis said simply as he let the curtain fall back over the window and faced Locke again.

"What do you mean, 'she wasn't responsible?'" Locke scoffed and leaned against the wall of the living room. "I heard she fried 50 of the Empire's best Magitek soldiers in under three minutes."

"Yes, that has been proving correct. However, what most people don't know is that she was wearing a slave crown at the same time, so she was completely brainwashed," he clarified as he walked over to the table where he placed it. He picked it up and showed it to Locke, who dared not touch it. Instead he slightly bent over so he was able to get a good look at it.

"I've heard that these things existed, but I've never actually seen one." He sighed at the appearance of it; it was only a simple metal band that was meant to be worn around the head. Locke wasn't sure how it was able to control someone's brain, but he wasn't about try it out. "So this is what the Empire has been up to, eh?"

"They're growing out of control," Arvis admitted as he placed the crown back on the table. "Before long, Gestahl is going to turn the world into chaos."

"I hear his second hand man is starting to taste the same power and climb higher on the pedestal, too," Locke stated as he pointed with his finger for emphasis. "What's going to happen to this world when Gestahl and Kefka completely band together and crave more power?"

"That's why you have to find this girl before they do," he said. "She's incredibly powerful and that's why the Empire wants her back. I don't know what is so special about her, but I think we should find out."

"And if she tries to kill us in the process?" Locke couldn't help but be skeptical of the situation. Memories of certain actions acted out by the Empire not long ago still gave Locke nightmares at night, resulting in the lack of trust toward them.

"I don't think she'll have any recollection of what she did while she was under the orders of the Empire. I do believe the Slave Crown assisted in that." Arvis bowed his head as he spoke. "She could be a great help to us if we talk to her. We must get her to understand our dilemma!"

"All right." He couldn't let another girl be ruined by the Empire's yearn for power, so he decided with a sigh and a nod of his head that it was a wise idea. "I think we'd better help her."

Arvis took a step toward the window again, then turned around and faced Locke. "Agreed. Make your way first to Figaro, and talk to the king."

"Ah, I haven't seen Edgar in a while," Locke said with a chuckle and hint of sarcasm as he thought of his friend. "Just so we're clear here, I'm not responsible if he makes a pass at her."

"He's a king, Locke," Arvis protested as Locke nodded his head.

"He's Edgar. It's not illogical to think that he'll become more interested in her than we want him to be," he said with a smile as he started toward the back door. Arvis followed him, and when he opened it, he stood partially outside. "Okay, I'm off. Hopefully I'll find her."

"Look, the smaller ones are her footprints in the snow," Arvis pointed out as Locke looked at the ground. There were two sets of footprints; one set belonged to Locke and the second set belonged to the girl that he was going to find. He followed them from the bridge to the entrance of a cave across town with his eyes. "Let's hope they direct you to her."

"You and me both, man," Locke responded with a shrug.

"I hope to hear from you soon," the older man said as he put a hand on Locke's shoulder. "Be careful."

"I will be," he replied as he felt a gust of cold air touch his face, causing him to shiver. He looked back at Arvis and, with a smile, said, "Let's just hope I don't freeze to death first."

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He followed the footsteps that were starting to fill up with the falling snow and walked into the cave. Of course, once he stepped inside the cave, the tell tale footprints weren't there any longer, so he just made his way through the cave in hopes that he'd run into her.

He tried to stay alert, but he couldn't help his mind from wandering. _The Empire is now controlling the minds of innocent people against their will…_He kicked the snow off of his boots and shook his head to rid it of the melted snow. _Will it ever stop? It all started with that attack on Kohlingen not long ago…Not only the Empire's greed, but my hatred for them as well…_

After a few minutes, he entered another cavern and saw something suspicious at a slightly higher altitude. _What's that?_ He thought as he advanced toward it. He furrowed his forehead as he walked up the slight hill and gasped when he realized what it was.

It was a small hole in the floor by the wall; as if the weak ground broke away when someone stepped on it. When he reached it, he got on his knees to look down it, and just as he feared, there was an unconscious person down there—a girl. _No doubt the girl I'm supposed to be looking for. It might've been a good idea to ask Arvis what she looked like, but I'm sure that's her…_Locke quickly looked around for soldiers, and when he realized that no one was around him, he figured they were on their way to find another route to where she fell.

_Okay, if I try to do what the soldiers did and look for another way down there, I'm sure they'll get to her first and I can't risk that…_It looked as though it was a long fall and bones would break with the contact, but he took his chances and jumped anyway.

Luckily, there was only a slight pain in the arches of his feet when he landed, so it wasn't anything he couldn't deal with. He went down on his knees and looked at her, shocked at her beautiful appearance. She had emerald green hair, rosy red lips, and flawless creamy skin. He gently moved a few strands of hair out of her face but jumped when he heard a voice.

"Now we gotcha!" Locke stood up and moved to a clearing in the cavern to see a guard standing near the exit, which was about twenty or so yards away. _Nah, one guard'll be easy to…_He trailed off when he saw several more soldiers and their trained attack dogs come up behind the first guard.

"Wonderful," he said sarcastically as he sighed and looked at them all. "There's a whole bunch of 'em." He shook his head and figured that there wasn't anything he could do but try to fend them off by himself, so he grabbed his dagger out slowly. He needed to get the girl to Figaro and the only way out was through those guards.

Just as he was about to move forward and take his shot at the guards, he heard a tiny voice behind him say the word, "kupo." He wasn't sure what it was, so he whipped around with his dagger still in his hand, figuring he was surrounded. Instead of it being a monster, it was a tiny white creature with tiny red wings, black eyes, and a red pompom was attached to its head.

"Wow," Locke exhaled as he realized what it was. It was a moogle. Although he had heard about them, he had never actually seen one, so he was in awe at its cuddly appearance. Then, several more moogles came out of the cave and stood behind the first one that emerged. Rumor said that moogles were very strong creatures, so Locke didn't put his guard down, afraid that the Imperial army branched out and started to train moogles to attack. _Yeah, cute and cuddly until they kick your ass…_

Instead of the moogles charging toward Locke in a full blown attack, they all peacefully walked toward the girl and looked at her. Locke wanted to watch them for they were curious little creatures, but he figured that they weren't there for any harm and they were just observing what was going on. He figured it would've been okay to leave the girl in the moogles' protection while he went and fought, so he started to go after the guards. He didn't get further than two steps before the leader of the moogles moved in front of him, blocking his path. The little moogle looked up at Locke and nodded at him, leaving the man bewildered.

"Moogles! Are you saying you want to help me?"

"Kupo!" The moogles all nodded and jumped in the air in unison, causing Locke to laugh in relief. One of the moogles motioned to Locke to start moving toward the guards and he nodded in agreement. The guards were already advancing toward them, so waiting any longer would give the Imperial troops an open invitation to take the girl.

"Yep, let's split up into three groups," he said quickly and he pointed as he spoke them. "Okay, you four go to the right of the cave, you three go down the center with me, and you four can go to the left. Just make sure the guards don't reach the girl, all right?"

The moogles nodded in comprehension and the three groups split up and started to make their way through the cavern. One at a time, they were able to destroy the guards, soldiers, their guard dogs and make their way closer to the man in charge. It wasn't an easy task, but Locke was amazed at the grace and strength that the moogles had. They were very small, but no fiend stood a chance against those little guys.

When Locke's group reached the commander of the troop, he sneered at them and gave them a nasty grin. "Well, you defeated my troops, but don't think you're going to have an easy time defeating me," he said as he turned his head and spit. Locke scoffed in disgust and positioned himself in a fighter's stance.

"Let's finish this," he said, watching the little moogles get into fighting stances of their own.

"Take your best shot," the commander replied arrogantly as he pulled out his sword. The moogles' speed was far greater than the commander's so they were able to each get in a hit before the commander knew what was coming. He stumbled a few steps backward and Locke couldn't help but let out a laugh.

"You're not making this any fun!" Locke jeered as he taunted the commander by motioning with his fingers to come closer to him. The commander growled and took a swing at him, missing by a mile. Locke only feigned a yawn as the commander regained his stature. To throw the armored man off more, Locke rushed at him and stole a potion.

"Why, you little thief!"

"I was hoping you would call me that," Locke retorted with an icy smile. If there was anything that fired up Locke more, it was being called a thief. With one swift movement, he jabbed the man with his dagger, knocking him on the ground. "That's what you get, you bastard," he said to the fallen man, keeping his smile on his face as he sheathed his dagger away.

He looked back over at the moogles who were looking at him innocently, and he couldn't help but gently smile at them. They started to walk back over to where the girl was lying and after looking at her for a second, the moogles left the cave.

"Thanks, Moogles! We're in your debt!" Locke called after them as he waved. If it weren't for them, he knew he might've been killed, and then who knows what would've happened to the girl. He knelt down and gently stroked her cheek, feeling how cold she was. She was still alive, but lying on the frozen dirt floor was sucking all the heat from her body.

He carefully picked her up in his arms and as quickly as he could, walked to the exit of the cave. As gently as he could, he placed her back on the ground and walked over to a hidden switch on the wall. "I think this switch'll…" He mumbled as he pulled it down. At the pull of the switch, part of the cave opened up, causing him to jump.

He quickly looked around to make sure that no one heard him, and let out the breath he was holding when he didn't hear a stampede of footsteps. He was about to pick up the girl again and bring her to safety when he heard her slightly groan. She slowly lifted up her head and painfully eased herself into a sitting position, blinking a few times to adjust herself to the light in the cave. "Eh? You're back with us now!"

The girl looked confused as she scanned her surroundings. When her eyes saw Locke, she slowly tilted her head so she could look at him in the eyes. He started to walk closer to her and she placed her hand on her head. "Oooh, my head hurts…"

"You fell a long way," he told her as he knelt down and gently smiled. "You're lucky that you were only knocked unconscious and not killed. It's a good thing I got to you before the Imperial troops did."

"You…saved me?"

"I guess you could call it that." He helped her to her feet and she wobbled as she tried to find her center of gravity. "However, as much as I would like to, I can't take all the credit. Save your thanks for the moogles!"

Her feet gave way under her and she fell back down to her knees. She quietly groaned as she brought her hand to her forehead once again and gave Locke a puzzled look. "Uhh…I can't remember anything…past or present." She shook her head and continued to concentrate, the confused look remaining on her face.

_Oh no…_Locke thought as his pulse started to race. His eyes widened as he looked at the girl and with a shaky voice asked, "You have amnesia?"

Once again, she rose to her feet, looking slightly more balanced this time. She nodded at him and he looked away from her in fear. Nothing could frighten him more than the thought of amnesia, for amnesia was the one thing that ruined his life. He wasn't the one who had acquired it, but more often then not, he wished that he were the one who did so he could forget those memories. He could feel the tears well up in his eyes as she looked at him in confusion of why he reacted in such a manner. She blinked at him and quietly said, "A man said my memory would come back."

"Give it time," he replied as optimistically as possible. He blinked the potential tears away and smiled at the girl. He knew that getting upset by the past would only make her more terrified than she already was. "You're safe with me! I give you my word!"

"What do you mean?" She asked him innocently as she slightly faltered. Locke quickly ran to her aid and caught her before she fell back onto the ground. The fall from the weak ground didn't harm her, but she felt as if the world were spinning around her. He smiled at her as she looked up at him in a dizzy haze.

"I won't leave you until your memory returns!" She smiled at him and he confidently nodded his head. _I'm not going to run away from something like this again! I will stay by her side until she can remember everything! I can't fail someone else…_

"Why?" She asked out of curiosity. To her surprise, a look of determination washed over his face and he gritted his teeth. "Oh, I'm sorry. I didn't mean to pry or anything, it's just that we don't know each other or anything—"

"Locke Cole," he replied simply as he grabbed her hand and shook it. "What's your name?"

"Terra Branford," she said slowly as he nodded.

"There you go, we're acquainted now." He helped her stand again and made sure that she was going to be okay walking on her own, and she seemed as though she was going to be fine. "Now come on, let's get out of here before some more soldiers show up looking to throw a party. I need to introduce you to someone."

"Wow, I'm just meeting a whole new group of people today," she responded as Locke started to walk out of the cave. She followed him and stopped when he fiddled with something against the outer wall of the cave, causing the gap to heal itself and form into solid rock again.

He saw her eyeing what he just did and he winked at her. "By the way, this secret entrance might be useful someday. Don't forget about it!"

She nodded at him and they left the town of Narshe, leaving Locke deep in his thoughts the entire way to Figaro Castle. His memories, his past, everything that he tried to forget was creeping up on him again so all he could do was think about it and remember. _Remember_ _her…_


	2. A Day In The Life of A Treasure Hunter

**(Arrrrg...sorry, I had to edit this...so this is the new version. However, it's not a drastic change...it's only the last like three lines...but it ties into something later. Sorry!)**

**This chapter starts off Locke's past. All the chapters that deal with Locke's past are about four years before the start of FFVI. Most chapters will be obvious of what time period it takes place in, but I thought I would make it clear. Enjoy!**

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**2. A Day In The Life of A Treasure Hunter**

"Come on, baby, where are you?" Locke was on his hands and knees, closely inspecting a wall of the cave that he was in. It was rumored that there was a great treasure hidden somewhere along these walls, and although Locke didn't know where it was or even what it was, he was not leaving the cave until he found it. _I promised myself I would find it, and I'll be damned if I have to go back without it! I will spend the night here if I have to!_

He was frustrated for he had been searching this cave for several hours now, going by what was said in a rumor. He banged his fist against the hard stone wall, slightly grimacing with pain, but the pain of not being able to find the treasure was worse. He sat on the ground and exhaled, hoping that the trinket would just pop out at him and spare him from his dissatisfaction.

Locke definitely came a long way from his childhood, and he still shuddered at the thoughts of everything that happened in his past. He was raised by his wealthy grandmother in Kohlingen, who he was very close too. She would tell the small boy endless stories about the War of the Magi and the Espers of yore and he would listen carefully with interest. When his grandmother died when he was ten, he felt like his world came to an end. She was all he ever knew of family, for his mother died from the troubled birth, and his father died of a sickness a few years after Locke was born. He never really knew anyone other than his grandmother, for he was always a shy boy who kept to himself, so by losing his grandmother, he lost his only friend.

Unable to stand the heartbreak of losing his grandmother, he cut himself off from any other family ties that he potentially had and tried to fend for himself. He wasn't fond of any real work, so he spent most of his days searching the forests and the mountains for small treasures and trinkets that he could barter off for food and money. By doing so, he gained a reputation of being a slacker among other things, thus the beginning of his hatred toward authority figures. Although having a reputation such as the one he had didn't bring him down, it just gave him more of a reason to leave his hometown of Kohlingen and start a new life for himself.

Starting on his own was rough for him, for he was only 17 years old at the time and wasn't even sure what his place in life was. The only thing that intrigued him was old relics, money, and history of the tired world. Naturally, he combined those three interests and started to search for relics that explained some of the history of some towns. He was naturally agile and nimble, so pick pocketing and picking locks came easy to him, and he used those talents as an advantage. He hated the stigma that the word 'thief' brought on, but it was hard not to think of himself in any other way since he was on his own and he needed to indulge in those crimes to survive.

He preferred the term Treasure Hunter, which is none other than a synonym to the word that he detested, but to him it made a huge difference. By choosing this way of life, he was free to roam the countryside at his will to search for treasures. Although it was lonely, traveling town to town like that, he was already a recluse in life so he was unfazed by being by himself all the time. Companionship meant nothing to him anyway for the only thing that interested him was finding new treasures. He was in love with treasure hunting; it gave him a purpose in life.

Locke shook his head quickly to wipe away the images of his past and continued to search the wall again. Giving up was not a trait that he possessed, so the inability to find the treasure that was rumored in this cave was exasperating to him. "Come on!" He said in a forced whisper as he moved his hand over the wall. "It has to be here! Please be here!"

As if an answer to his plea, he felt a slight dip in the wall, piquing his curiosity. He pushed on the crevice, causing the entire wall to shake. Locke hopped on his feet and tried to gain his balance for it felt as if an earthquake was ripping though the earth. He watched the wall slide open about a foot and a half then stop, leaving Locke to thank himself that he was a rather slim man.

"Heh," he said in wonder as he slipped through the crack in the wall. He looked back at the gap that was in the wall and he knew that he didn't want anyone following him, so he found the switch on the other side, which caused the wall to mend itself again. With the path closed behind him, he started to walk forward to see what treasures awaited him. It was obvious that no one had been down in the cave for quite some time by the way the torches were burnt down to nothing and the only clues to fires were the burnt ashes that lay scattered on the ground.

Locke carefully grabbed a stick that was once used as a torch, hoping that it wasn't too worn down and wouldn't crumble in a million pieces if he picked it up. He figured the goddesses were with him that day when he saw that the torch would be capable of being lit again. He grabbed his flint stones out of his pocket, clicked them together causing several sparks to touch the end of the stick, setting it ablaze. Locke put the stones back in his pocket and lifted the torch up to get a better look at the cavern.

He slightly chuckled as he looked around at the remains of what clearly used to be an old campsite. There weren't any paths to other parts of the cave; it was just one large open area. He was assuming a band of thieves used to live here by the array of weapons and camping supplies that were scattered everywhere. _Something must've come here and wiped them all out…_He thought as he investigated everything. _I don't think they would've left in this manner if they had planned it…_

Although he knew he was alone, he still looked around before starting to search for treasure. He found several potions, antidotes, and gold pieces during his search and put them in his pockets. _Never know when they'll come in handy…_He continued to search until he saw a key with an intricate top to it. A ribbon was strung through the handle so Locke assumed that it was worn as a necklace for safe keeping by the owner.

"Hello. Now, what could you be the key to?" He said out loud as he held it up by the ribbon and put the key up to his eye level. He lifted up the torch and continued to walk around and did a double take to a chest that was about twenty yards away. He quickly walked over to it, inspected the lock, then inspected the key. "I think I just found out."

He put the key in the keyhole and it easily twisted, opening the lock. "Oh man," Locke said with a chuckle. "People don't believe in challenges anymore!" He threw the lock to the side, opened the chest, then groaned when he looked inside, for it was full of clothing. He couldn't ignore the voice in his head that told him to search it anyway, so he started to move the clothes out of the chest. He jerked back when a group of moths flew out of the clothing when their sleep was disturbed, then rolled his eyes in annoyance as he continued to throw the clothes on the ground.

The last few things in the chest were two small wooden boxes, which were also locked. Locke reached in and inspected one as he made a few clicking sounds with his tongue. He grabbed out his set of lock picks that he kept with him at all times and started to go to work on the lock. After only a few seconds, the lock broke free and Locke chuckled.

He carefully took off the lock, in suspense of what was in the box. He lifted the top of the box and found himself looking at several priceless jewels. There were diamonds, emeralds, pearls, and other precious stones; and all decently sized. Locke was giddy with his finding and didn't want anyone else to be able to snag it from him, so he put the lock back on it and placed it in his pack. He reached in for the second box, picked the lock and opened it.

His excitement grew as he saw the beautiful dagger that was in the case. It was untarnished and quite possibly the most beautiful weapon he had ever seen. There was gold laid into the hilt and several jewels surrounded in the steel of the blade. He gently rubbed his finger along the edge of it, and inhaled as it cut through his skin, drawing a few drops of blood.

"Still sharp," he said under his breath as he continued to look at it. "I'm not sure what is supposed to be the actual treasure; the jewels or the dagger. Unless, of course, there is more in here."

He took out his old dagger from the holster and looked at it. It was in rather sad shape and he knew he wouldn't be able to get much for it if he tried to pawn it off, if anything at all, so he drove it into the ground next to the wall. He happily looked at his new and elaborate dagger and put it in the holster, making it its new home. He stood up and continued to look around to see if anything else was left for him to find.

The torch light was starting to dim, and Locke sighed. He knew that it was because it was an old stick and probably damp from remaining dormant in the cave all this time. He shrugged and decided that he would look around for a little while longer and then come back another time. He knelt down by another box and started to rummage through it, in hopes of finding more things. Although it was a rather satisfying day already, his curiosity was still working.

He stopped his movements when he heard a sound; footsteps. He cautiously brought his hand to his dagger and tightly gripped the hilt, just waiting to attack. The footsteps stopped, but Locke wasn't going to put his guard down because he knew someone or something was down there with him and he wanted to be able to protect himself.

"Locke?" Locke jumped at the sound of his name for he wasn't expecting it to be someone who knew of him. He took out his dagger and whipped around to see a tall, muscular man standing behind him. He was wearing black pants, a white shirt, a red bandana around his head, and carried a nice sized sword in a holster around his belt.

"How the hell did you get in here?" He got into a fighting stance with his dagger in his hand, and the other man simply laughed at him. "What the hell's so funny?"

"You don't know who I am, do you?" The man asked as Locke slightly lowered his dagger as a look of confusion washed over his face.

"No, I don't," Locke replied honestly as the man put his hands on his hips. "Okay, I answered your question and now you answer mine. What the hell are you doing here?"

"Name's Xane," he replied simply as he walked over to Locke. "Hm, I pictured you a lot differently, but what can ya do."

"Okay, now two questions," Locke said to the mystery man, not putting his dagger away yet. "Who the hell are you and what the hell are you doing here?"

"I've heard a lot about you, Locke Cole." Hearing his full name come out of the man's mouth was strange to him; no one had called him that in years. "You're a very hard man to track down, you know. Vaughn would be very impressed."

"Vaughn?" Locke asked, the name ringing a bell in his head. "Why have I heard that name before?"

"Vaughn is the leader of a band of treasure hunters called Quantz," he replied as Locke's jaw dropped. "Oh, I'm assuming you've heard of us before?"

"It sounds familiar." He voice was nonchalant, but in actuality, he was awestruck. Quantz was a group of some of the best known treasure hunters in the World Of Balance; everyone who had the slightest interest in treasure hunting knew who they were. They were notorious and Locke admired them from afar ever since he heard of them. "What do you want with me?"

"Vaughn would like to speak to you," Xane replied as he started to walk out of the cave, leaving Locke in shock. "However, he wouldn't be too happy of how you basically let everyone in this continent know you were in this cavern."

"Hey, it's not my fault that the door hasn't been used in a while and made a damn earthquake," Locke said quite defensively, putting the dagger in the holster. "If I'd have known it was going to be that loud, I would've returned at about three in the morning so no one would be awake."

"We'll let that be our little secret then," he said as he motioned for Locke to find the release to open the door again. When Locke found it, the entire cave shook and rumbled as the door opened.

"Wait just a second," Locke said, pausing as he watched Xane exit the cave. "Why was the door quiet for you, yet feels the need to cause an insane amount of noise whenever I touch it?"

"I'm just lucky, I guess," he stated as Locke narrowed his eyes in confusion. "Now come on, Vaughn doesn't like to be kept waiting."


	3. Quantz

**It's been a while, I'm terribly sorry! However, as most of you know, my original plan was to write out the entire fic before posting it (I did the same thing with Doppelganger and I was very happy with the results), but I figured since I haven't posted in forever, I would post this chapter. There isn't really a whole lot of action in this chapter, but it's definitely important. By the by, I have about 25 chapters written for this fic already...but it'll be a while before they're posted. Call it a curse of a perfectionist...sorry...but this fic is my baby, so I want it to end up the way I want it to :) Okay, hopefully I won't be absent for almost two months again...Enjoy. :) **

**P.S. I also edited the ending of the previous chapter...sorry! I replaced it, but I'm not sure how long it's going to take to actually be updated on this site. I'm a perfectionist, sorry! (another reason why I am fully writing this before I post it! Otherwise I would constantly re-edit chapters and I know that would get annoying!)**

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**3. Quantz**

Locke quietly followed Xane to the Quantz hideout, which was deep in the forest near Kohlingen. He was skeptical of the entire situation due to the fact that he was never sought out, yet alone from the leader of a well known treasure hunter organization. _I didn't think my work was that well known..._He thought as he shoved his hands in the pockets of his pants. _Actually, I didn't think my work was known at all…_

As they walked in silence, Locke eyed Xane to get a closer look. Xane looked as though he was a few years older than Locke and he carried himself well, as if he were an Imperial soldier, not a man who stole for a living. His hair was neatly combed, his clothes spotless, and his stride confident. Locke looked down and frowned at his own mud caked boots, old pants, and ripped shirt. He had basically worn the same outfit every day since he left Kohlingen, and although he washed it frequently, it looked worn out and rather pathetic. Not only that, but his hair was getting to be too long to keep down or combed back, so he kept what he could in a ponytail, and the rest hung around his face. If anything, Locke was the more suspicious looking of the two, and it made him slightly self-conscious.

When they reached a mountain wall, Xane stopped in his tracks and motioned Locke to step aside. _What the hell is he doing? _Locke thought, making a face as he watched Xane place his hand over the rock. A blast of magic burst out from his hand, causing the rock to display a door for them to walk through. Locke's eyes went wide from disbelief of what he saw, and had to blink several times to comprehend what just happened. _Magic was used during the War of the Magi…_He thought to himself as he cautiously walked through the magic-made door. _My grandmother said that after the war, magic ceased to exist…It's probably just my eyes playing tricks on me. That couldn't have been magic…right?_

"Now, here's the thing you need to know about Vaughn," Xane started to explain as he faced Locke. He noticed that Locke was watching how the rock slowly started to form again over the door and wasn't listening to a word that he was saying. To grab his attention, he slammed the door as hard as he could, causing Locke to jump. "Listen to me when I talk to you."

"Oh, sorry," Locke apologized as he continued to look at the doorway. He lifted his hand to point at the closed door and without looking at Xane, he manage to squeak out the word, "How…"

"Vaughn will explain everything," he interrupted, snapping his fingers in front of Locke's face to catch his attention again. "Anyway, like I was saying, here are some things you need to know before you make an ass out of yourself. First of all, Vaughn won't put up with any kind of bullshit whatsoever, so you better listen to him and watch what you say. Don't ramble on about nothing because he'll become irritated. However, you don't want to be nervous or too quiet either, 'cause that'll cause Vaughn to be impatient and probably pissed off. He doesn't want a weak-minded person in Quantz."

While still looking in the direction of the where the door was a second ago out of the corner of his eye, he crossed his arms and scoffed. "Okay, so then how am I supposed to act?"

"You have to be calm, collected, and confident when it comes to being around Vaughn," Xane replied, remotely answering Locke's question. "That's basically our motto."

"Why does he want to see me, anyway?" Xane shrugged his shoulders and led him to the door to Vaughn's office. Locke grabbed the older man by the shoulder and whipped him around. "You're not being very helpful to me here. I mean, you seek me out to see your leader, but about what?"

"Don't question it, boy," Xane said as he shrugged off Locke's grip and continued to walk toward a large wooden door at the end of a hallway. He stopped Locke by holding his hand up before opening the door. He faced him and pointed with the finger on the hand that he stopped him with for emphasis as he talked. "You don't want to screw this opportunity up. That's my last warning for you. Let's just hope you're smart enough to listen to it."

Locke blinked in surprise and sighed when Xane opened the door. He followed Xane in the dimly lit room and craned his head to observe his surroundings. The walls were lined with bookcases, pictures, and a coat rack stood in the corner. The bookcases were not all filled with books; instead, many treasures that Vaughn had collected over the years were put on display for the world to see. There was a large wooden desk at the opposite side of the room with a man sitting in a large leather chair. He was writing a letter and motioned Xane to come in further without even looking up. Locke looked up at Xane and nervously swallowed. _Breathe, Locke! It'll be okay! Don't pass out…_He thought to himself to help him remain calm.

"Hey, Vaughn," Xane said as he crossed his arms. Locke narrowed his eyes at how informal Xane was to his boss, but decided not to think anything of it. "I found Locke Cole like you asked me to."

Slowly, the man put his pen down, looked up, and sat up straight, allowing Locke to get a good look at him. He had a healthy build, jet black hair which was neatly combed back into a ponytail, a medium complexion, and an all around sly look to him. He looked like he couldn't have been any older than his late twenties, causing Locke to narrow his eyes at him. _He's quite young for being a leader of a group of this magnitude…_He thought as the man kindly smiled at him, revealing nice, white, straight teeth.

"Well done, Xane. You're dismissed." Xane nodded then left the room, leaving Locke alone with Vaughn. "Please, sit down."

Locke gulped as Vaughn pointed to a few chairs that were located in front of his desk. He slowly walked to one of the seats and sat down, not realizing just how nervous he was. Due to his antisocial behavior from being a lone wolf of a treasure hunter most of his life, he wasn't very comfortable when it came to a one on one conversation. His leg shook slightly as he waited for Vaughn to speak again.

"Now, Locke, I'm assuming you know why I've called you here," he questioned as Locke shook his head.

"I have a few ideas, but I'd rather have you explain it to me so I don't say the wrong thing." Vaughn let out a chuckle as Locke tapped his fingers against the arm of the chair he was sitting in.

"Well, we'll get to that in a second," he said as he continued to smile. "But first, let's talk about you. I've heard a great deal about you, Locke. I've heard of the things you have found and the discoveries you have made over the last few years and I must say I'm very impressed. How old are you? Twenty? Twenty-one?"

"Just turned twenty-three, sir." Locke answered politely as Vaughn nodded.

"I was close. However, are you aware that there are many treasure hunters who are in their late thirties who haven't accomplished _half _as much as you have?" Locke couldn't help but feel his face flush and he slightly sank back in his chair. He wasn't used to being complimented in such a manner and it made him slightly uncomfortable. "When I heard about your many accomplishments, I just had to see if you've ever heard of Quantz."

"Of course I have," Locke began with an awed smile. "Every treasure hunter in this entire world who is serious about their work has heard of Quantz. I remember when I was younger, I heard a few men in Kohlingen—that's where I'm from—talk about it. Heh, that memory just sticks out in my mind."

"How long have you been treasure hunting?" Vaughn asked out of curiosity. He brought his hand to his face and rubbed his freshly shaven chin as he waited for Locke to answer.

Locke thought about it for a second then shrugged. "I don't know. I mean, it was just one of those things that fell into my lap. I've always liked history, so I guess looking for stuff to unravel history seemed to be my calling."

"You've made quite a reputation for yourself ever since you became a treasure hunter. For example, I heard you caught wind of the treasure that was rumored to be in the caves that was in the forest just east of here." He tapped his chin with his fingertips as he looked at Locke for an answer.

"Oh yeah," Locke replied as he leaned back in his seat. "I was looking for it when your man Xane found me."

"Did you find anything of interest?" Locke slightly frowned at the older man and he crossed his arms. "What's that look for?"

"Now, wait just a second here, _Vaughn_," he said as he stood up, feeling defensive and protective of his findings. He emphasized the man's name because a red flag warning went off above his head. "I don't know why you called me here, but if it's just because you want me to find things and have you benefit from it, you're dreaming."

"That's not it at all, Locke," Vaughn replied as he stood up. Although Locke was glaring, Vaughn looked calm as he explained himself. "I have respect for what you find and I would never take it from you. I was just curious to see if you found anything, because we've heard the rumors of that cave as well."

"Why should I trust you?" Locke countered as he widened his stance.

"Have I given you a reason _not_ to trust me?" Locke looked to the side when he realized that Vaughn was right, but he still wasn't sure if he should trust him or not. Locke had a hard time trusting people in general, and the fact that the man was a treasure hunter didn't exactly help. Treasure hunters weren't stereotyped as the most trustworthy and liable people. However, he knew he wanted into impress Vaughn more than anything, so he finally sighed and reached into his pocket for the box of jewels that he found earlier.

"Fine," he said as he placed the box on Vaughn's desk and tapped his finger on it. "I found this."

Vaughn looked at it for a second, and when he saw the lock, he pointed to it. "Are you going to unlock the box or not?"

"You're a treasure hunter, too," Locke challenged with a huff as he sat back down. "Can't you open the box yourself?"

"Of course I can," Vaughn stated as he reached into his drawer and grabbed his collection of picks. "I was just wondering if you already knew what was in the box."

"Come on, do you really think I would go through all that trouble of finding a box and not pick the lock?" Locke asked as Vaughn insulted his treasure hunting ability. "You know, _you_ are the one who went to find _me_."

"Yes, I'm completely aware of that. Oh my," Vaughn exhaled as he opened the box to see the jewels inside. Locke's lips started to turn up into a smile as he watched Vaughn's face start to glow in delight. "Where did you find these?"

"Oh, they were in a trunk full of moth infested clothes," he said, not revealing the dagger that was at his side. "I would've looked around more thoroughly, but Xane interrupted my search. I might have to go back sometime, I don't know."

"Hmm." Vaughn took out one of the diamonds to examine it closer. He picked it up with his thumb and forefinger and turned it every which way before he nodded. "Yeah, these are real all right. Nice. Nice find there, Locke."

"Thanks," he said sincerely as he ran his fingers through his tousled hair. He started to feel more insecure again as Vaughn quietly mumbled something as he continued to look through the collection of gems that were handed over to him. He cleared his throat to break up the uncomfortable feeling that was in the room, and Vaughn looked up at him with a smile.

"How would you feel to be a member of Quantz?" Locke's jaw dropped in surprise, causing Vaughn to laugh at him. "Oh, come on, don't give me that look. You are more than qualified to be part of the group. Why else would I have sought you out?"

"There must be some kind of—very unfortunate—mistake," Locke stated as he stood up, chuckling in shock. "I mean, I'm nothing special."

"Let me rephrase this in terms that we're both more comfortable and familiar with," he said, leaning closer to Locke. "I'm a treasure hunter. You're a treasure. Naturally, I had to hunt you down. Understand?"

"Yeah." Locke couldn't help but sink back in his chair and blush again at the flattering remark. "I don't deserve that though."

"Look, Locke," Vaughn started as he stood up. As he spoke, he walked over to a table that was against one of the bookshelves, which had several bottles of hard liquor placed on it. He picked up one of the crystal containers that obtained amber colored liquor, and poured himself a glass, not bothering to ask Locke if he wanted something to drink as well. "I'm a business man. It might not look like it, but I'm running a very important business."

"Okay," Locke said slowly, not sure if Vaughn was just going to ramble on things that didn't apply to him and brag about his business. "Again, no offence, but I really don't want to be here all day if you're just going to waste my time. There are a million treasures out there that are just asking to be found."

"Exactly," Vaughn said as he rushed back over to his desk and pounded it gently with his empty fist for emphasis. "I want you to go on a hunt for me. If you're successful and bring back what I'm looking for, I'll let you join Quantz. If you're not successful…Well, frankly I don't want to even think about that."

"I'll find it," he stated confidently as he nodded his head. "What is it and where?"

"It's based off another rumor, but then again that secret passageway that you found in that cave was also considered a rumor." He chuckled as he slowly drank from the glass that was in his hand. "The waterfalls that are located in the forest a few miles from Kohlingen conceal what was once a campground for a band of thieves."

"Oh yay," Locke drawled with an annoyed sigh as he steepled his fingers against his chest. "Another hidden campground. There's one I haven't heard before."

"Assumedly the band of thieves were attacked and killed by another band of thieves. What a wonderful world we live in," he added with yet another chuckle as he continued. "The leader of the thieves was presumed to possess a very important relic that he carried around with him at all times."

"That's the treasure?" Locke assumed as Vaughn nodded his head. He stood up, exhaled, and started to leave the room. "Consider it found."

"Xane is going with you," Vaughn said with a lift of his eyebrows as he took a sip from the crystal glass that was in his hand. Locke stopped in his tracks and exhaled in disgust, causing Vaughn to sit in his chair and place his glass down. "This is a test run, Locke. When you're officially in Quantz, you'll be able to go out on your own. As for now, however, I want you to go with Xane."

"I'm sure he's gonna love that," Locke stated as he slowly turned toward Vaughn.

"He doesn't have a choice in the matter either, you know," Vaughn reminded him with a smile. "You will go out tomorrow, first thing in the morning. As for tonight, Xane will direct you to your new room."

"Thanks," Locke replied as he walked out of Vaughn's office. After he shut the door, he turned around to see Xane about three inches in front of him. He screeched to a halt s he wouldn't run into him then said, "Hey, sorry, man." Locke looked at Xane and saw the look of hatred in his eyes, so the playful smile that was on Locke's face fell into a frown. Although Xane was several inches taller than Locke's 5'9" build, they were still able to glare into each other's eyes with the same merciless gaze. "Were you listening to the conversation between Vaughn and I?"

"Frankly, I don't give a damn what Vaughn has to say to you," Xane retorted as he crossed his arms across his chest. "I just need to talk to him about a few matters that don't concern you, so walk to your little room and butt out."

"Unfortunately, you're the one who is supposed to show me to my room," Locke informed Xane as he motioned with his hands to lead him there. Xane frowned and scoffed, causing Locke only to give him a smug smile. "So if you're not going to tell me what you and Vaughn need to talk about, I suggest you lead the way and get me out your sight. Besides, it'll only be a matter of time before I have my own private meetings with Vaughn, leaving _you _wondering and curious. And, oh, just so you're aware, Vaughn ordered you to go on a hunt with me tomorrow morning. Of course, that will be the only time before I'm able to go out on my own."

"Let's get one thing straight right now," the older man said he put his hands on his hips. "You don't know the way this place works, so don't think you can run it."

"Just give me time." Locke crossed his arms over his chest and raised his eyebrows at Xane.

"Boy, I hope your treasure hunting hand is a quick as your mouth," he challenged and started to move closer.

"It's quicker," Locke retorted as he walked by Xane, purposely letting his shoulder run into Xane's at the same time.

"Find your own damn room," Xane shouted after Locke and started to walk into Vaughn's office.


	4. The Trial

**I have been battling a major migraine for the last few days, so I figured that this chapter had been done for quite some time and it really didn't need anything added to it...and posting it would make me happy and take my head off the throbbing pain. YAY! I'm so insane, lol. Anyway, it probably won't be long before I post the next few chapters as well...They've been done for quite some time. However, I'm still making little adjustments daily, so I'm not positive. This fic is taking me a long time to write...sorry. Okay, I'm done talking. Bye!**

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**4.The Trial**

Locke woke up the next morning fairly early due to the fact that the morning sunlight streamed through his window onto his face at the perfect angle at about 7:30am. He tried to hide the sun from his eyes, but he figured it was useless and sat up in his bed with a yawn. Lucky for him, it didn't take him very long to find his own room the previous night after he stormed away from Xane. Although Locke cursed at himself for being so stubborn, he figured he wasn't going to let Xane walk all over him just because he was clearly the best treasure hunter in Quantz, besides Vaughn of course. Locke was able to ask someone else that was wondering the halls where his room was and they managed to point him in the right direction. He didn't have any special belongings to add to his room besides his new dagger, so he just laid in his bed for a few hours thinking until he fell asleep.

However, now that it was morning, he knew he had to get ready before Xane would barge into his room. _There's something about him that I just don't like…_Locke thought as he walked out of bed and pulled on his boxers so he could walk across the hallway to find a bathroom without having to walk naked. He stepped out into the hallway and saw a man gawk at him. Locke felt slightly uncomfortable and continued to walk toward the bathroom, avoiding eye contact.

"'Scuse me," the man said as he walked up to Locke. He looked several years younger than Locke, but he was about four inches taller. The man was wearing a nice shirt, nice pants, and an elegant watch on his left wrist—_Stolen without a doubt…_Locke thought as he looked at it. "You're…You're Locke Cole, aren't you?"

"Yeah, that's me," he replied as he nervously looked around. He felt quite exposed in only his underwear and the fact that this man stopped him in the middle of the hallway where people frequent only made him feel worse. "Ya know, now really isn't—"

"Holy shit, no way! I've heard a lot of stories about you!" The man continued to drabble on, causing Locke to slightly chuckle.

"Really? That's great, but I'd really—"

"Where did you learn all your tricks from?" Locke wasn't sure how to react to the man, so he shifted on his feet. It was flattering that the man was so excited, but the fact that he was practically nude while speaking to him made him very uneasy.

"Hey, can we talk later?" Locke asked as the man's eyes went wide in excitement.

"You mean it?"

"Yes, I really do," he replied quickly as the man reached for Locke's hand.

"Wow, that means a lot! You have no idea!" The man was shaking his hand so hard that he was causing his entire body to shake.

"Okay, okay, okay! I'd like to go take a shower, so I'm not standing in my underwear anymore."

"Okay!" The man said cheerfully as Locke took his hand back from the man's grip. "I'm looking forward to talking later!"

"Yeah, me too," Locke said as he continued his way toward the bathroom, slightly grimacing. _Note to self…_He said as he walked in the bathroom. _Always wear a towel or pants while walking in the hallway…_

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"Whaddaya want?" Locke yelled when he heard a very persistent knock at his door. Instead of the knocking ceasing like he had hoped, it only grew louder. Locke exhaled and rolled his eyes at the relentless knocker as he threw on his pants and walked to the door. He opened it to see Xane standing there, ready to go.

"Hurry up," he said as he noticed Locke's state of dress. Without a response, Locke threw on a shirt and Xane walked in and looked around. There was nothing but the bare walls, Locke's bed, a book shelf, a tiny table next to the bed, and a dresser against one of the walls. The window was cracked open, letting the fresh breeze and bird chirps enter the room. "Wow, it's amazing what you've done to the place."

"Yeah, the decorator just left actually," Locke threw back as he crouched down and started lacing up his boots. Xane chuckled and walked over to the dresser, where Locke's new dagger was placed. He saw Xane's gaze linger on it and he leaned over to get a closer look to keep an eye on him. "Don't even think about touching that."

"Wow." Without a missed beat, Xane picked it up and inspected it although Locke told him not to. "This is a thing of beauty."

"I found her in the cave that I was in yesterday before you rudely barged in and interrupted my search," Locke informed Xane as he walked up to him and ripped it out of his hands. "I would appreciate it if you wouldn't touch my things."

"Hmm, possessive, are we?" Xane snorted as Locke shot him a glare.

"Let's just do this," he said as he tied his belt with the dagger on it around his waist and started to walk toward the door. "I don't want to spend any more time with you than I have to, so how about we finish this quickly so I can move on with my life."

"If you're not interested in Quantz," Xane started as he ran in front of Locke and blocked his way out of his room, causing Locke to roll his eyes and look up at the ceiling. "Then why are you wasting your time?"

"I think you misunderstand me," he said, grabbing Xane's arm to move it from the doorframe. Although Xane tried brace his arm, Locke was stronger than him and was able to push it away quite easily. "I am very interested in Quantz. As a matter of fact, I have been interested in Quantz since I began my career as a treasure hunter. It's _you_ I have a problem with. However, I know the only way I can get into here is if I do this mission with you. So, I have to overcome my incapacitating feelings to ram your head into a wall and get along with you on this one assignment so I can start to work on my own."

"You don't frighten me." Xane crossed his arms as he glared at Locke, matching the brutal look that burned in Locke's eyes.

"No?" Locke asked as he inched closer to the older man, taking his dagger in his right hand. "Let's see what we can do about that."

"One blow and Vaughn'll have reward posters up for your head, you know that, right?" Xane didn't flinch for he knew his statement was correct. Locke inhaled through his nose as he placed his dagger back on his side, then exhaled as he shook his head. He knew that by implying that he would basically do anything to get into Quantz, Xane could use Vaughn as a shield. "Good boy. Now let's go."

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They walked through the plains in silence, mainly because neither young man wanted to look at the other. Locke had to calm down his anger and urge to murder Xane by looking at the surroundings. Thankfully it was a beautiful sunny day, so that helped advert Locke's feelings of hatred down to a low boil. The World of Balance was a wonderful place to be in the springtime—the birds were singing as they flew from tree to tree as they tried to find a mate, the warm sun poured from the sky and kissed everything it touched, and there was always a nice gentle breeze.

As they entered the forest, the temperature cooled down slightly due to the umbrella that the trees formed to block the sun and cause a nice shade. The forest ground was covered with roots, small puddles, and tiny animals so Locke had to carefully watch his step so he wouldn't trip and fall over anything.

Locke cocked his head when he heard the faint sound of water flowing. Without looking at Xane, he started to follow his ears toward the growing sound of the water and moved away a few branches that blocked his view. Upon seeing the waterfall, he and Xane walked closer to it.

"Now what?" Locke asked when they reached the water's edge. The waterfall was a good twenty feet away without any clear path of land to get to it. Locke assumed if they walked around for a few miles they would've eventually found something that they use to cross to the other side, but they didn't have that time, nor did Locke have the patience.

"I hope you can swim," Xane said as he started to walk in the water. Locke quirked an eyebrow, so Xane continued with, "In case you haven't noticed, the only way to get behind those falls is walking under it."

"Wait a minute." Locke started to follow Xane, but stopped when he was about ankle deep in the water. "You're telling me that the thieves walked through the water every time they wanted to go to their hideout? They would freeze to death in the winter."

"There's probably another entrance somewhere, but this is the only choice we have now." Xane treaded the water for a second before taking a deep breath and diving under. Locke watched as his head popped up from the other side of the waterfall, and with a sigh, he followed and did the same.

When he surfaced, he shook his head to rid it of excess water and noticed that Xane was starting to walk through the cave that was there. Locke slightly jogged to keep up and almost didn't notice that Xane stopped.

"What?" Locke asked as he noticed Xane feeling the wall. "Oh great, another secret passageway?"

"I don't see any doors, do you?" Xane snapped as he continued to prod the wall. He scoffed when he realized that Locke had his arms crossed and was looking around the inside of the cave aimlessly. "In case you didn't notice, this is me trying to find a way to get in. Please, feel free to join in whenever you'd like."

"It's right here, dammit," he said when he noticed an odd shaped root sticking out from the side of the cave. With a strong pull, the wall started to open, revealing the secret room. "All thieves are alike with their secrets and whatnot."

"You think you have to tell me that? I've been treasure hunting longer than you have." Xane replied as he brushed his hands off on his pants and walked through the newly found door.

"Well, you didn't find it right away, now, did you?" Locke shot back with a scoff. "If you knew their tricks, why did you have to depend on me?"

"This one wasn't hidden very well now that I think about it, but I've seen more obvious entranceways," he replied, not bothering to look back at Locke. "And I didn't depend on you, just for the record."

"I don't understand why you couldn't just put your hand over the rock and make a door like you did yesterday," Locke stated, slight sarcasm in his voice. "It would've been easier than trying to find our own way in. It would've been quicker too."

Xane shrugged and started to mumble something under his breath, and with a roll of his eyes Locke made his way through as well. Just as he was about to find a way to shut the door, a bright flash emitted from Xane and the door shut on its own. Locke whipped around and sent a glare at Xane, but the light of the spell had already dimmed and it was too dark.

The cavern air was thick and musty, not to mention the fact that it was pitch black. Locke blindly looked around for something to ignite, but it was a difficult task for he couldn't see the very nose on his face. He squinted to find out if he could actually see anything, but it was fruitless. Knowing that he couldn't see anything, he concentrated on listening to his surroundings to see if he could hear any movements. He heard a very faint rustling coming from one of the sides of the cave, but he figured it was just a small animal of some sort who had chosen this area to be its home. However, the assumption wasn't comforting and the hair on the back of Locke's neck continued to stick straight up.

"That's funny," Locke said in a voice barely above a whisper. He craned his neck to look around, but he couldn't even see Xane anymore.

"I don't see anything humorous about this situation," Xane said as he reached out his hands in hopes to find a wall or something else to guide him so he wouldn't fall. Locke turned toward the direction that he heard Xane's voice and continued to speak.

"No, I just have a bad feeling is all," Locke replied as he walked straight into a metal object on accident, his foot hitting it hard. "Dammit!"

"Is it something you can light?" Xane asked as he continued to walk blindly, not concerned about Locke's foot at all. Locke scoffed and shook his head when he realized that it was only a chest of some kind. "Hm. I'll take your silence as a no."

"It's just a metal box. I'm serious about what I said though," he continued as he rubbed his foot through his shoe, which was now sore from the contact with the metal. "It's like a hunch and most of the time my hunches are correct. I would feel a lot more comfortable if I would be able to see further than three inches in front of my face, and that's being rather generous with the sight distance I'm given right now."

"Fine," Xane grumbled with a sigh. As Locke continued to look around, he started to see a dim glow out of the corner of his eye, causing him to quickly turn his head to see what it was. He started to walk closer to it and noticed that it was starting to grow from a tiny speck of light into a small fire suspended in air. The fireball flew down to the ground where it sparked into a nice sized fire, which illuminated the room quite well. The flames caused shadows on Xane's face, who didn't look alarmed nor astonished. "This'll work to stop your whining."

"How do you have the power of magic, Xane?" Locke questioned calmly as he crossed his arms. He had heard stories of magic and mages from when he was younger, but he had never seen a spell done in front of his eyes up until recently. In the last two days, Xane had performed three spells that Locke had witnessed, and it started to make him feel uneasy. Magic was what started the War of the Magi; the war that almost ceased existence on the world and that's all that he could think of. Xane shrugged in response to Locke's question as he started to look through some crates and chests. "You told me Vaughn would explain everything, but I forgot to ask him about it."

"That's not my fault then, is it?" Xane shot over his shoulder as he continued to move abandoned objects to the side. "Ask him another time because we have work to do and I don't want to hear the sound of your voice. You do have a very annoying voice. Has anyone ever told you that before?"

With a sigh, Locke decided to ignore Xane's snide remark and look for the relic from the thieves' leader. Although he tried to put it in the back of his mind, the vision of the fire spell brought up too many thoughts to do so. _Magic…_He contemplated as he picked a lock on one of the chests. _I thought the days of magic were dead…_

A slight crunching noise caused Locke to look up from what he was doing and look straight at the wall that he was facing. He knew the sound was coming from behind him, but he was hesitant to look and see what it was. It wasn't Xane, for he was kneeling down a few feet in front of him and he also whipped his head up. The two men looked at each other simultaneously then looked over their shoulders.

About ten feet behind Locke was a bear like fiend, on his hind legs and ready to attack. Locke leaped to his feet and pulled his dagger out to protect himself as the creature started to advance on them. _I knew I had that bad feeling for a reason! _Locke thought as he slightly backed toward the wall of the cave. With a loud roar, the creature swiped at Xane, the force throwing him against the wall.

"Xane!" Locke cried as he looked over at Xane, who was slowly getting back on his feet. Upon turning his attention back to the fiend, Locke brought down his dagger it as hard as he could, causing some critical damage. The bear growled and fell to all four of his feet so he was able to balance himself more evenly.

"Locke, look!" Xane pointed to something around the bear's neck. When Locke narrowed his eyes at it, he saw that it glimmered every time it caught the light from the fire. "It's the relic!"

"Oh, isn't that nice," he yelled back, dodging an attack. "They used the bear to guard it!"

Locke struck the bear again, but before he could move out of the way, the bear scratched him across the chest with his razor sharp claws. Locke grimaced with the pain as he felt his flesh rip open, but kept his ground. Before he could advance on the bear again, Xane performed a fire spell and directed it toward the bear. Locke shielded his eyes from the scorching heat as the bear whimpered in pain and fell in a huge heap on the ground.

With an exhale, Locke walked slightly closer to the fiend to make sure that it was dead. It wasn't moving or breathing, so he figured that was a good sign. He placed his hand on his chest, feeling his warm blood seep out of his wounds and cover his hands. "Oh, this can't be a good thing," he muttered, trying to remain as calm as possible. Fear would only make the situation worse, so he quickly searched his pockets for a potion. The cave was starting to turn hazy as his focus started to fail, and he started to feel as if a large weight was put on his chest.

As he sunk to his knees in exhaustion from losing blood so rapidly, he saw a bright flash of light surround him. When the light was gone, his eyes refocused, the wounds healed and he was able to stand on his feet again. _A cure spell…_He thought as he looked at his hands and clothes. Although they were covered in blood not longer than ten seconds ago, they were now clean; almost as if the memory was erased and nothing happened.

"Be careful next time," Xane said calmly as he walked over to Locke and patted him on the shoulder. Locke patted his chest where his wounds were then slowly looked up at Xane in awe.

"You just saved my life." The older man shrugged as he walked over to the bear.

"I couldn't let you die," he replied as he knelt down to grab the relic. He pulled on it as hard as he could, breaking the clasp and freeing it from the bear's neck. As he stood up, he looked up at Locke, who was still in shock, and added, "Unfortunately."

"Oh." Locke was thoroughly confused and continued to look at his hands on his chest. _If he had any chance to leave me for dead, that would've be it…_Xane walked past him and motioned him to follow.

"Come on, we got what we came for." With a nod, Locke began to follow Xane out of the cave and back to the Quantz hideout.


	5. The Unsent Laugh

**Okay, this did take longer than I expected to update, but I also didn't expect to write this chapter...or the next one for that matter. Oh yeah, in case you haven't noticed, this chapter is in 'game time.' (One of my favorite parts of the game actually) The more I thought about it, the more I realized that it was important to Locke as well...So I managed to throw together something decent in two days and post it. Sorry that it's kind of long...that was another thing I wasn't expecting. I swear though...Rachel will enter the story eventually! There were just a few things I had to put in here before I could post up the beginning chapter with her. XD P.S. I know I used this title name in Zanarkand A-East as well...but it fits in this fic too. (Although it is from a song title in X for Seymour) Okay, I'm shutting up. (Damn, I like to babble) **

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**5. The Unsent Laugh**

"Are you okay?" Terra asked as she and Locke made their way through the desert to Figaro Castle. Locke jumped at the sound of her voice, scaring the young girl at the same time.

"Oh, I'm sorry, I didn't mean to frighten you," he apologized as she put her hand to her heart to make sure that it was beating normally. "I was just thinking. I tend to do that from time to time, so I ask for forgiveness in advance."

"Nah, it's not a problem," she said with a shrug of her shoulders. "So, I just have to ask; is there any reason why you're taking me to a king who lives in the middle of the desert?" She was trying to remain nonchalant, but her voice wavered as she put a tendril of hair behind her ear and looked at Locke.

"Of course there are reasons," he replied cheerfully as he saw Figaro Castle appear from the horizon. "I wouldn't just be taking you on a wild chocobo hunt."

She nodded her head as she gently kicked the sand up with her feet as she walked. With a point of her finger, she looked at the castle as well. "Is that where we're going?"

"No, there are six other castles in this desert, so I'm going to take you to the last one that we see," he smiled at her and she made a face at him. "I'm just kidding. Yes, that is the castle we're going to. Figaro Castle is the only castle that is in the middle of nowhere, and of course, that's the one that we're going to."

"Just use this opportunity to get some color in your skin! However, by standing next to you, I think all the sunrays are going to bounce off of you and reflect to me because you're so white," she pointed out, gently poking his arm. He looked down at his skin and realized that he was rather pale, but shrugged anyway.

"I don't tan, I burn," he stated as he looked straight ahead, trying not to smile. "Red is better than extremely pale, but I don't think I exactly have time for an aloe vera bath."

"'Not enough time?' What's the time limit on?" She asked, growing serious even though Locke had a small smirk on his face. He looked at her and gave her a gentle push to cheer her up. She let out a small yelp as she almost tripped over her feet then pushed him back. "That's not very nice when I'm in heels!"

He chuckled at her and wiped his forehead with his hand to prevent the sweat to drip down his face. "Thank the goddesses that we're almost there. I think I'm melting out here."

Terra let out a giggle and they walked the rest of the way in silence, occasionally kicking sand at each other. _How the hell can she be so carefree and cheerful when she doesn't even remember anything that's happened in her life? What's it like to be the one who forgets everything?_

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"Wait! Hey!" The guard on duty at Figaro Castle exclaimed when he noticed Locke and Terra try to walk past.

"Hey, man!" Locke said in greeting as he shook the guard's hand, surprising him with the gesture. "It hasn't been _that_ long since I've been here and you've already forgotten me?"

"Oh, it's you!" The guard replied with a laugh after recognizing the young treasure hunter. "Sorry, I was in my own little world. Anyway, I'm sure Edgar would love to see you. Please, proceed."

Locke nodded as a thank you toward the guard as he led Terra through the gate and they both kicked the sand off of their shoes. They made their way to the throne room and Locke walked through the door without even knocking.

King Edgar was sitting on his throne with his chin in his hand staring off into space, not even fazed by the fact that the door opened. Locke looked at Terra and motioned her to stay by the door and he made his way up to the king.

"Edgar?" Locke tapped Edgar on the shoulder and he jumped about a foot in the air, causing Locke cross his arms and make a clicking sound with his tongue. "Why isn't anyone alert today? You're the second person I've startled in the last three minutes."

"Oh, I'm sorry," Edgar said as he wiped his face with his hand as he spoke. "It was a long night last night, so I'm exhausted."

"Long night in what sense?" Locke asked, his eyebrow raising at his innuendo. "Wait a minute here. That priestess from Doma was here yesterday, wasn't she? Edgar…"

"That's not what I meant," Edgar replied with a playful roll of his eyes. "Unfortunately. So anyway, what's up? How've you been?"

Locke looked back over at Terra, who was nervously tracing the grout in the tiles with the toe of her shoe. When he looked back at Edgar, the smile on the man's face was full of ideas. "No, Edgar, it's not what you think."

"Really?" Edgar whispered as he continued to look at Terra in a full stare. "Well, if she's not yours, can I have a try at her?"

"Down boy," Locke said as he put his hand on Edgar's shoulder to stop him from running over to her and pouncing. "Well, you remember that witch that everyone has been muttering about over last few weeks?"

"Yeah…" The young king responded slowly as Locke removed his hand from his shoulder. He nodded in her direction, making Edgar's eyes go wide when he finally grasped the concept. "You mean, _this _young woman!"

Before Locke could stop him this time, Edgar walked over to Terra and studied her. He let his eyes trail from hers, down to her toes, then back up to her eyes. Locke saw her eyes blink in surprise and face flush from the gaze. She looked at Edgar in disbelief, and Locke wasn't sure if she was going to cry or attack him. The young king turned around and flashed Locke a smile, showing him his devious thoughts. _They say, 'yeah, she's powerful, but damn she is gorgeous!'_ Locke read as he let out a chuckle.

"Who do you think you are?" She snapped as she put her hands on her hips, Edgar stopping when he heard her voice.

Edgar flashed Locke another look, screaming that he was caught, so he bowed his head and looked at the ground. "Oh…sorry!" He slowly turned on his heel to face her then shook his finger at himself. "How rude of me to turn my back on a lady! It's not in my nature at all, I promise you."

Terra exhaled as he made his way over to her, gently took her hand in his own and brought it to his lips. Locke smiled and shook his head at the king's flirtatious nature, and saw Terra blush even more.

"Oh," she replied quietly as she took her hand out of Edgar's and brushed a few stray hairs behind her ear out of nervousness.

"Anyway, let me introduce myself properly," he stated with a dramatic bow. "I am Edgar Roni Figaro, King of Figaro. Hmm, that's a very repetitive statement; I've never noticed that before. I need to work on that."

Terra giggled as he stood up straight and put his hand to his chin in thought. "It works though," she said to boost his confidence.

"Surprised someone like me knows a king?" Locke asked the young woman as he walked next to Edgar and patted him on the back.

"To be honest? Yes, I am actually." Locke's face fell, but she giggled, proving to him that she was just joking around with him. "I'm just kidding, don't take me so seriously."

"Not a problem." He shrugged as his smile returned to his face. He turned to Edgar and whispered, "Okay, I'm gonna go walk around so you can have some time with her alone."

The sparkle appeared in Edgar's eyes as he whispered back, "Whoo! Thanks, Locke!"

"No, you sex-craved bastard," Locke said with a chuckle as he shook his head. "That was not an open invitation to try to get down her pants. She's a powerful girl and could probably kill you with a lift of her finger, so I wouldn't even attempt it."

"Yeah, good point." Edgar made a face in disappointment and looked at Terra out of the corner of his eye. She was giving the two men a strange and impatient look because they were speaking behind her back, and Locke could tell she was offended.

"Besides, you know that sleeping with her wasn't in the orders from Banon," Locke added with a chuckle.

"Maybe that's what's wrong with his orders, have you ever thought of that?" Edgar quipped as he put his hand to his chin and tapped his lips with his forefinger.

"Um…" Terra said quietly as she rolled on the balls of her feet. "Can I ask what's going on?"

"That's Edgar's job," Locke announced as he pointed to Edgar quickly. "He's the king, I'm just the messenger. Well, talk to you later!"

Before either of them had a chance to say anything else, he walked out of the room and shut the door. He was thankful, too, for he wasn't sure how to explain anything to her for he wasn't even exactly sure what was going on. He knew that Edgar was going to have a difficult time explaining it as well, but Locke just prayed that he was going to do the best job he could without making a pass at the young girl.

"What do you think is going to happen?" Locke whipped his head up to see the Chancellor standing several feet away with his arms crossed against his chest. He walked closer to Locke as he sighed.

"I wish I knew." He shook his head and raised his shoulders. He was going to make a joke about Edgar and Terra, but decided to keep the conversation on topic and discuss the Empire. "Everything is just becoming worse and worse. It's another one of those times where I feel I'm running around for some reason that I'm not even sure of. Banon didn't exactly give me a lot of details. Actually, he didn't give me any details. I didn't even know what the hell I was going to Narshe for. He basically woke me up, he shoved the directions to Arvis' house in my hands, then said, 'You. Go. Now.'"

The Chancellor chuckled at Locke's impression of Banon and put his hand on Locke's shoulder. "Did you find out anything about her?"

"Well, knowing she doesn't remember anything that happened in her entire life; no." He sighed as he and the Chancellor walked out into the main foyer of the castle for some fresh air. "She's having so much thrown at her and I'm afraid this is just the beginning of everything."

The two men looked at each other in silence for a moment when a young soldier ran over to them. "Sir, there happens to be someone approaching the castle with Imperial soldiers."

"Thank you, soldier. Please go tell the king. You are dismissed," the Chancellor said with a nod toward the soldier. When the soldier was out of sight, the Chancellor turned toward Locke again. "Edgar is not going to be happy to hear this. Let's go quickly make a plan of what to do."

Locke agreed as he followed the Chancellor toward the throne room, practically running into Edgar when he and the girl walked through the door. Terra looked frightened and walked closer to Locke for some kind of protection as the three men looked at each other.

"It's probably Kefka," Edgar stated with a roll of his eyes. "Gestahl did warn me that he might send him to pay me a visit. This better be a short visit for I am not in the mood to deal with him today. I wonder what the hell he wants."

"The address of a qualified surgeon to remove the power trip from his ass?" Locke quipped instantly with a smile, causing Terra to giggle. "In all seriousness, I have no idea."

"Think about it, you two. They're probably searching for the girl," the Chancellor said as they all looked at Terra. "She seems to be the main thing that is on the Empire's mind right now.

"Me?" Her voice was quiet and she grabbed onto Locke's arm. Locke wasn't sure what to do, so he let her remain there. "Why?"

"Okay, Locke, here's my plan," Edgar began as they walked to the door, not answering Terra's question. "I want Terra to stay behind the door and you stand in front of it. I'll distract Kefka somehow and get him out of here so we have time to think of a better plan in case he decides to come back. How's that sound?"

"I haven't any other plan, so it'll have to work," he replied and everyone else nodded. "Let's do it."

Locke moved out of the way so Edgar could lead, then motioned Terra to stay right behind the door to for safety. She nodded and he shut the door and stood right in front of it so no one would be able to get her unless they went through him first.

"Outta my way!" Locke heard Kefka say from the front gate, causing him to grit his teeth. _No one will be able to get to her…not as long as I'm around…_He thought to himself as he saw Kefka emerge onto the main level of the castle.

Locke had heard Edgar make fun of Kefka's appearance, but he had never actually seen him until now. He wasn't sure what his reaction should be, for the man looked like a circus clown escapee. His face was heavily painted with different color makeup, his blonde hair was in a ridiculous looking ponytail near the top of his head, his shoes were pointy, and he was even wearing a flamboyant cape.

_How can anyone take this man seriously? _Locke thought to himself as he put his hand to his forehead in shame that the entire world was in terror over this man. _If he were to ever give me an order, I fear I would laugh in his face!_

Edgar looked less than thrilled as he approached the two soldiers that arrived with Kefka. Locke heard him say something to the two soldiers, but the wind blew most of the sound away. All he was able to hear was, "You've been busy down south, haven't you? Why are you here? Looking for more cities to destroy?" The soldier's response was too muffled to make out, but Locke could clearly hear his mocking laugh ring through the air.

_What's in the south? Oh…Maranda is directly south of Figaro…_Locke thought as he sighed in memory of what happened. _No one in that town had a chance…Then the soldiers went to Kohlingen…over that stupid thing…_

When Edgar reached Kefka, he spoke rather loudly so Locke and the Chancellor would be able to make out his conversation, and Locke was thankful for that because Edgar broke his trip down memory lane. "Well, whaddaya know! Kefka, how've you been?"

"I'm not here for small talk, King Edgar," Kefka retorted as he flipped his blonde hair out of his face. "I wouldn't have traveled through the scorching hot desert for four hours if I wanted to have tea."

"Well, then what brings Kefka Palazzo, humble servant of Emperor Gestahl into our lowly presence?" Edgar asked as he used his hands to motion toward the castle. "It's been a while since I've had a member of the Imperial army set foot in Figaro. You would think since we are allies and everything, you would at least personally hand us a Christmas card every year. It's sad because I have to just keep reminding myself that you didn't forget about us and the card just got lost in—"

"A girl of no importance recently escaped from us," Kefka interrupted with a huff. He clearly didn't have patience to begin with, yet alone to listen to Edgar's attempt at humor.

Edgar pretended to act interested as he nodded his head and took a few steps closer to where Kefka was standing. "A girl, eh? Hmm. Isn't that interesting? I'm still not understanding how this concerns my people."

"We heard that she found refuge here," Kefka continued to explain as he let his eyes wander around the castle. Locke scoffed quietly to himself and tapped his foot on the ground. _Does he think he's gonna find her? _He thought as he stole a glance toward the Chancellor.

"Hmm…" Edgar began as he took a few steps away and pretended to think about what Kefka just said. "This wouldn't have anything to do with this 'witch' everyone's been whispering about, would it?"

"'Witch?' Ha! Lies!" Kefka stated with a short laugh. "That was just a rumor started by some people who were extremely bored with their lives. I blame it on the people of Albrook."

Edgar scoffed at Kefka's justification and didn't believe it for a second. "Why Albrook? What, are they your next target on the map?"

"Even if it was, which it's not because the Empire doesn't _dare_ harm innocent people, it would still be none of your business," Kefka snapped. Locke exhaled in disbelief and wasn't surprised when he heard several soldiers, the Chancellor, and Edgar do the same. "Back onto the girl. She's not a witch at all. She…merely stole something of minor value."

"Ah, a criminal," Edgar said with a nod of his head. "So you're looking for her so she can be put behind bars?

"Uh, something like that." Kefka took a few steps toward Edgar and tried to study him. "So, is she here?"

"Hmm," Edgar said as he furrowed his forehead, looked off toward the side, and started to think about the question. He put his hands on his hips, and after a dramatic pause, he faced Kefka again. "That's a really tough question. You see, there're more girls here than grains of sand out there. I can't keep track of 'em all!"

"Are you a king or a hustler?" Usually Edgar would've laughed at the statement, but considering it was from Kefka, he wasn't amused in the least.

"I'm nothing of the sort. I run a tight ship here, but it just so happens that there are a lot of women in this castle," Edgar clarified. "However, I haven't seen anyone out of the ordinary. Especially with what I have heard about this witch, she's quite the beauty, so I'm sure she would've caught my eye by now." He noticed that Kefka wasn't sure where he was going with his ramblings, so Edgar added, "In other words; no. She's not here."

"I'd hate to be you if we find out you're lying," Kefka said with a laugh. His laugh chilled Locke down to the core, and he felt goosebumps rise on his arms.

"And I would lie to the Empire because…?" Edgar questioned as Kefka turned around and started to leave the castle. He didn't get very far before looking over his shoulder at the young king.

"I truly hope nothing happens to you and your precious Figaro!" He shouted with another laugh, then left the castle with his two soldiers.

Edgar shook his head then walked up to Locke. "You know, they never just leave. They always have to say _something_."

"Well, I'd say that guy's missing a few buttons…" Locke muttered, causing Edgar to laugh. "Since it's going to bother me if I don't ask, what's with the makeup? I don't understand it."

"No one does, but that's Kefka for you," Edgar stated as he gestured to the front gate, where Kefka just left. "I'm not so sure about that man sometimes, but Gestahl sees something in him. I'm assuming something dangerous."

"I've heard stories," Locke confirmed as he bowed his head at the memories. _Jidoor…Maranda…Kohlingen…_

"Where's Terra?" Edgar asked, breaking Locke's thought process once again. Locke whipped his head up then moved out of the way to open the door. The young girl emerged timidly and she looked around.

"Is…he gone?" She asked as both men nodded. "Okay, good. I heard his laugh…"

Terra shuddered at her own words, emitting a worried look between the two men. Edgar pulled Locke off to the side and began whispering to him. "Take her to her room and make sure that she'll be safe, got it?"

"Of course," Locke replied and Edgar walked up to Terra.

"I'd love to chat with you, but the Chancellor and I must plan our strategy. Sometimes I hate being king!" He sighed as he gently patted Terra on the back. "If you'll excuse me."

Locke and Terra watched as Edgar and the Chancellor went through the doors toward the throne room, then their eyes locked. Locke smiled at her and pointed to the direction that they were to go. "Come on, follow me."

Without a word, she followed him through the castle and almost ran into him when he stopped in a room. "Are…you going to stay with me?"

"I'll be right down the hall," he replied as he narrowed his eyes slightly at her, unsure why she asked that. "Don't you worry 'bout a thing! I'll—"

"You're Locke, right?" She asked as he nodded at her. "Okay, that's what I thought but I'm terrible with names."

"Don't worry about it," he said with a shrug, although he was slightly insulted. _Amnesia still coming into play?_ He thought to himself as he shifted his weight from one leg to the other. _I was the second person she saw since she got her memory back and she can't even remember my name…_

"Edgar told me about you," she continued as she innocently looked down at the floor. "Is it true you're a thief?"

Locke tried not to explode at the girl, but he answered sternly, "That's _treasure hunter!" _He groaned and placed his hand on his forehead. "How many times do I have to tell Edgar to get it right?"

"What's the difference?" She asked, confused. "Aren't they the same thing?"

"Far…_far _from being the same thing," he explained, enunciating each syllable. He started to leave her room, but she began to speak.

"So, I don't understand what happened out there." Locke looked over his shoulder to see her fingering the end of her ponytail in thought. "I mean, I thought that you and Edgar are on the same side. Ya know, _against_ the Empire and all. So why was he talking to that man, when he has high rank in the Empire?"

"On the surface Edgar pretends to support the Empire. The truth is, he's collaborating with the Returners, an organization opposed to the Empire," he began to explain as she nodded in comprehension. "It's almost like he's a double agent—he finds out information about the Empire then tells the Returners about it so we can keep a close eye out and attempt to thwart their next move."

"Oh," she replied quietly. "So, what's your role in all of this?"

"I am his contact with that group," he said with a shrug, not wanting to go into extreme detail. "That old man you met in Narshe is one of us. He was the one who informed Banon that you were there, which is why Banon sent me to go after you."

"Empire…but I'm a soldier of the Empire!" Locke turned around to face her and saw her head bowed to the ground in shame. "I guess that means that you're against me too."

"That's not true! Don't even think about that!" He heard her sniff and he hoped she wasn't about to cry. "Terra, look at me. You have to understand that they were using you! Things are different now."

"How?" The hopelessness in her voice was enough to break Locke's heart, yet he wasn't able to fully answer her question.

"Well, for starters, we're going to do everything in our power to keep you as far away from the Empire as possible." He figured that was a good enough explanation to keep her satisfied, for that was all the information he knew.

Instead, she shook her head and sighed. "I don't understand. What should I do?"

He walked up to her and gently placed a hand on her shoulder. She looked up at him, her eyes revealing how lost she was. "I can't tell you what to do. However, I can tell you that you don't have to decide right now. You'll soon find your way…"

She nodded as he left the room, but through the door he was able to hear her say to herself, "But how will I know which way is right…?"


	6. Magic

**Okay, one of the scenes in here is my favorite part of the game...and I tried to capture the moment as best that I could. Lol. It's hard to kind of put certain things in ONLY Locke's perspective...Like, there are parts in the game that deal with, say, Edgar and Kefka and Locke isn't there...so you have to kinda make up some things. You'll see what I mean when you get to those parts. : ) Again, I have no idea how this chapter ended up so long...dear lord. Blame Gwen, my muse. It's all her fault! By the by, Rachel will actually enter the story in the next few chapters. (Either four or two...not sure of the order of the upcoming chapters, but the next chapter WILL be a 'past' chapter) Um, okay, that's it. **

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**6. "Magic" **

Locke woke up with a start and as he gasped, sat straight up in his bed. He gripped the sheets tightly between his fingers when he realized that his breathing was very rapid and he was covered in a light sweat. As his eyes slowly adjusted to the darkness of the room, he was able to remember that he was in one of the many guest rooms of Figaro Castle and not back at Kohlingen as his nightmare suggested.

_It felt so real…_He thought as he put his hand over his heart and laid back down to catch his breath. Although it was in the middle of the night, he was afraid to go back to sleep in fear his nightmare would reoccur.

The same nightmare had haunted him for weeks and he wasn't able to shake the horrible memory out of his head, and believed he never would. It was as he was being tortured by seeing his mistake over and over and not being able to change it.

_I can hear the screams…Hear the soldier's mocking laughter…_He continued to think as he ran his hand over his face and grabbed his lower lip with his thumb and forefinger. Preparing to stay up for the remainder of the night, he stood up and turned on the lamp that was positioned next to his bed. He slowly put on his clothes that were hanging over the headboard of the bed and shook his head at the nightmare. As his eyes wandered toward the ceiling, he tried to think of other things, but the dream was all that was on his mind.

He sniffed to prevent himself from crying and almost had to laugh at loud. _Damn, I'm really losing it, aren't I! I can even smell the smoke! _He looked toward the window and saw an orange hue rising and falling out of view. The sight caused him to narrow his eyes and walk closer to the window to get a better look. _Wait a minute…_

Inhaling again, he realized that he really did smell smoke and wasn't only imagining it. Following his instincts, he whipped around and looked back toward the lamp to see if that was the source. The light was dulled from being engulfed in smoke—smoke that wasn't from the lamp. Locke bolted to the window and gasped when he saw that the entire castle was ablaze.

"Terra!" He said out loud as he grabbed his dagger then began to run to her room to make sure that she was safe. The second he touched the doorknob, he regretted not thinking it would be extremely hot. He flexed his fingers, cursing at himself for being so careless. He took the bandana off of his head, wrapped it around the door knob, then twisted so he wouldn't completely burn his fingers.

Taking his bandana with him, he looked toward Terra's door and he could see that it was still shut. Most of the workers in the castle had woken up and were running through the halls to go to fresh air, so Locke was running against the flow as he made his way to where Terra was sleeping. He used his bandana method again to open the door and flew it open to see her still in bed.

As quickly as his feet would carry him, he went to her side and let out a sigh in relief when he saw that she was still alive and breathing. However, that wasn't satisfying enough for him, so he put his hand on her arm and shook her awake.

"Wha…" She muttered as she gently fluttered her eyes open.

"Terra, wake up!" Locke exclaimed as he continued to shake her. "Get up, get up, get up!"

"All right! I'm up, I'm up, I'm up!" She yelled, half mocking him as she smacked his arm away and sat up. "What's the big emergency?"

Locke ran to the other side of the room, grabbed her shoes then practically threw them at her. "Get dressed, now! Can't you smell that!"

The young girl gave him a confused look, but then her eyes widened when she smelled the smoke that was lingering in the air. "What the…" She coughed as she threw on her shoes as fast as she could. Locke also handed her her sword, which was lying across the table that was in her room.

"Take this, you're gonna need it! Now come on!" Locke shouted as he grabbed her by the arm and led her out of the confined rooms of the castle and toward the open level. As they were about to exit the main foyer, they saw the Chancellor.

"I was just going to find you two!" He shouted and ran closer to them. He pointed to the other direction and resumed speaking. "King Edgar ordered me to tell you to go to a different wing of the castle. It's still an open area, but he has a plan!"

"What's going on?" Terra asked, shouting over the sound of the flames and panicking people.

"It's Kefka's doing, are you surprised? He knows that we have you here and since we won't let you out of our sight, he decided to flambé the castle!" The Chancellor replied, coughing from the smoke. "Now, go to the eastern wing of the castle! Locke, you know where I'm talking about right?"

Locke nodded as he grabbed Terra by the wrist. "Good luck!" He shouted over his shoulder as he and Terra ran through the hallways, being careful not to touch any of the walls for fear that they were scorching hot from the flames.

When they arrived at their destination, they coughed and gasped for the fresh air before standing up straight and looking around. The sun was rising over the eastern border, so Locke was able to see the main level of the castle as he retied his bandana around his head. He frowned as he saw Edgar yelling at Kefka, only to have the man laugh right in his face. Terra gently placed a hand on Locke's arm as she noticed the sight as well.

"I'm sorry," she apologized as she brushed off some ash that was on her clothing with her free hand. "I didn't mean to drag you all into this mess."

"It's not your fault," Locke said as he watched Edgar walk up to one of the guards and whisper something to him. The guard nodded and ran inside the castle, just as Locke suspected he would.

"Of course it's my fault," she argued as she pointed to herself. "I'm the reason why Kefka is here anyway!"

"Terra, now is not the time to be talking about this." He put his hand up to stop her from talking so he could hear the signal from Edgar. She was about to speak again, but Locke clasped his hand over her mouth just in time to hear Edgar whistle. "There it is!"

"What's going on?" She asked, her voice muffled from Locke's hand as Locke pointed to three chocobos that were running across the side of the castle. The two of them watched as Edgar jumped on one of the creatures and led the other two to where Locke and Terra were standing.

"Jump!" Edgar yelled out to Terra and Locke when he was arriving under the bridge. Locke took his hand away from Terra's mouth and they both obeyed, landing on the two other chocobos and then followed Edgar around to the front of the castle. "Okay! Dive now!

"Yahoooo!" Locke whooped loudly in excitement for he knew what was about to happen next. The ground began to shake and Locke could only imagine the priceless look on Kefka's face. _Too bad I can't see the bastard…_He thought as he heard the soldiers on the castle shout orders to one another.

"Figaro Castle submerge mode engaged!" One guard yelled as the other soldiers began to cheer for they knew they were safe.

The castle fully submerged underground and Locke saw the look of amazement on Terra's face in the morning sunlight. She smiled and gripped the feathers of the chocobo's neck a little tighter causing Locke to laugh.

His laughter was interrupted when he heard Kefka let out a shriek then shout, "Go! _Get them!"_

All three of them looked over their shoulders in unison to see several soldiers in Magitek armor head their way. Even though they had a rather large lead on the Magitek armor, the machinery was able to move faster than the chocobos, so they were gaining on them.

"Uh oh, we have company!" Locke yelled as he held onto the chocobo with one hand and used the other to unsheathe his dagger. Terra looked at him in fright, yet nervously pulled out her sword as well.

"We can't fight on the chocobos!" Edgar announced as he brought his chocobo to a halt, Terra as well. As Locke tried to stop his, it halted so quickly that it threw Locke over its head and he landed in the sand with a yell. Ignoring him, Edgar shoved a few greens into Terra's hands. "Here, feed these to the chocobos! They'll stay put until the battle is over."

"Battle?" Terra exclaimed as she held out her hand and let the chocobos eat the greens. One of the chocobos gently let out a 'kweh' of gratitude and nuzzled the young girl as she watched the machinery come closer to them. "We're going to have to fight?"

"Telling them to turn around nicely isn't going to do the trick here!" Locke said as he stood up and ran back over to them. He felt something pull his bandana off his head and he instinctively ducked. He looked at his chocobo to see it drop his bandana, then reach out to nip at his hair in a playful manner. "Hey! Leave me alone! First you try to kill me and now you try to play with me, you vile creature!" He said to the bird as he swatted at it before bending over to pick up his bandana. He whipped his head over at Edgar as he stood in a fighter's stance. "What the hell was that shit you just had Terra feed them?"

"Gystahl Greens, it's a plant that calms down chocobos," Edgar explained as he pulled out his autocrossbow and loaded several arrows into the mechanism.

Locke rolled his eyes as he watched the soldiers come even closer. "Great, now we're going to be riding on drugged up chocobos," he muttered under his breath. He saw something shoot out of one of the Magitek weapons and he dodged it just in time. "Holy shit!"

"What the hell was that?" Edgar shouted as he shot his autocrossbow, hitting both guards. He made a face when he realized that the arrows didn't slow down the Magitek armor at all and simply ricocheted off.

"I'm not sure, but that was too close for comfort!" Locke yelled back as he attempted to strike at the guards. To his surprise, he hardly hurt the guard at all and instead hurt his own hand from the impact. He almost dropped his weapon from the pain, but walked back between Edgar and Terra instead. "What the hell! My blade isn't exactly being a help to me right now!"

"My crossbow's not doing too well either," Edgar announced in panic as he pulled out his Bio Blaster. "Maybe this'll help!"

Before he was able to use it, Terra performed a fire spell and it critically damaged both guards. It did so much damage that the guards were almost knocked unconscious and it stalled them for a second. Terra smiled at herself and Locke heard incoherent muttering from behind him.

Locke turned toward Edgar to see him pointing at the guards with his jaw dropped. He was trying form words, but nothing was making sense. "Edgar, what's the matter? You look positively spooked!"

"D…d-d-d-d-d-did you just see what I saw?" He asked as he slowly turned his upper body so he was now pointing at Terra. He tried to speak some more, but again, only babbling emitted from his lips.

"Yeah…" Locke said with a nonchalant shrug. Terra was sheepishly looking at the two men and Locke eyed her carefully before turning back to Edgar. "I noticed it as she and I got into several battles on the way to your castle. I see why the Empire is after her; this kid seems loaded for bear…"

Edgar rapidly nodded his head, his finger still pointing at Terra. "She's amazing! M-m-m-m-magic! She just did a fire spell! F-f-f-f-fire is magic! She just did a magic spell! That was magic! M-A-G-I-C!" To further his point, he grabbed Locke by the shoulders and shook him with every letter.

Locke turned toward Terra and gave her a gentle smile. "Would you please excuse us for a second?" The young woman looked confused but nodded anyway as Locke dragged Edgar several feet away and began whispering to him. "Knock it off! You're gonna scare her by reacting like this!"

"But, she just—"

"I know what she just did!" Locke snapped as he stole a glance at the guards to make sure that they were still halfway unconscious. "However, since you are suffering from the shock, let me remind you that Xane was able to do magic too!"

"You're right. I'm clearly overreacting aren't I?" Locke nodded and Edgar sighed. "I am deeply shamed." Although he shook his head calmly, Locke could tell that he was still unnerved from the spell. Locke turned him around so he could say something comforting to Terra. "Terra…where did you learn how to do that?"

Locke smacked his forehead with his hand, for that wasn't what he wanted Edgar to say at all. He watched as Terra looked down at her hands in embarrassment that she was receiving this kind of attention. "Sorry…I…um…"

By the way she was stammering almost as much as Edgar was, he pushed Edgar out of the way so he could get closer to her. Edgar let out a cry as he lost his balance and fell into the sand, but Locke ignored him and put his hand on Terra's arm. "Look, I didn't mean to make such a big deal out this…"

"Me either," Edgar said as he rose to his feet and walked over to Terra. "It's just that…even though I've heard about people doing it, I've never actually _seen_ magic before! Where did you…?"

Terra kept her head down and Locke heard a slight moaning from the guards, realizing that they were starting to come to their senses again. He stepped in front of Edgar to quickly finish their conversation and get back to the battle. "Edgar, Terra can use magic and we can't. That's the only difference between us. The fact is…we could use her help!"

She brought her head up and smiled at the two of them as they got their weapons out again. "Thank you, Locke!"

"Hey, what about me?" Edgar asked, still trying to calm himself down.

"Thank you as well, Edgar!" She replied with a smile as Locke tried attacking one of the soldiers. The soldier's defense was down from being in such a weak condition that Locke was able to finish him off. Instead of using magic again, Terra attacked with her sword, killing the other soldier.

"Now let's get out of here!" Locke said as he ran back to his chocobo, Edgar and Terra not far behind. "Now, you behave, you bastard," he muttered as he jumped onto his chocobo.

"Yeah, smart idea, Locke," Edgar threw over his shoulder with a small grunt as he mounted his chocobo as well. "Start calling it names and then see if it'll obey."

"It's working so far," Locke stated as the chocobo dug at the sand with its beak. "Well, okay, so it's not really obeying me…but at least it's not trying to kill me! I figure that's an improvement."

"Hey, look over there," Terra said as she pointed to where Figaro Castle used to be before it submerged. Standing in the sand, mouth dropped, was Kefka in amazement of what happened to his two soldiers. "What do you think we should do about him?"

Locke chuckled in amusement and turned his chocobo around to face the man. "I think that we should ride over there and taunt him because there isn't anything he can do about it!"

"Will we get caught?" Terra asked nervously. "That's really not on my top ten things to do today."

"In case you haven't noticed, we're on chocobos and he's on foot," Locke clarified as he started to ride in Kefka's direction. Edgar let out an excited yell and Terra hesitantly followed as they rushed toward him.

"Bravo, Figaro!" Edgar shouted as Terra and Locke made faces at the man.

"Son of a submariner!" He shrieked as he began jumping up and down, causing the desert sand to form a cloud of dust every time his feet hit the ground. The three of them laughed, but under the laughter, Locke could hear Kefka shout to himself, "They'll pay for this…"

"Wha ha, this is great!" Locke exclaimed as he finally started to gain control of his chocobo without it kicking him off. "Chocobos actually behave when they're drugged up!"

Edgar shot a confused look toward Locke. "What do you mean? They usually behave when they're clear headed as well."

"Not for me!" He clarified as he petted the chocobo on the head. "Good little chocobo!" He and Edgar both laughed and when he realized that it was only the two of them, he looked over at Terra. The expression on her face was unexplainable and it was enough to strike fear into his own heart. "Terra? Are you okay?"

"Was that a bad person?" Locke knew that she was talking about Kefka, so he nodded his head sympathetically. "I…I'm scared…"

"Terra…" Locke sighed and Edgar directed his chocobo to ride next to Terra's.

"Terra, there's someone I'd like you to meet!" Edgar's voice was cheerful and uplifting, so Locke figured he better act the same way.

He managed to guide his chocobo on the other side of Terra and join in on the conversation. "Like I've said before, we're members of the Returners."

"Our mentor, Banon, would certainly like to meet you," Edgar continued to explain as blushed slightly.

"Why do all these people want to meet me?" Locke wasn't sure if she meant to speak loudly enough for he and Edgar to hear her, but her question still made his face fall.

"'Magic' is going to be the key to winning this war," Edgar said bluntly with a shrug. Locke knew that was not the right thing to say because it lacked subtlety, but it was the truth.

"'Magic…'" The look on her face when she repeated the word proved to both men that although she had the power, she didn't realize that no one else did.

"Terra has magical powers." Edgar was stating the obvious, but he more or less was trying to figure out what was going on by speaking out loud. "From what we heard from Arvis, that Esper seemed to…react to her. Can there be some connection?"

"I haven't the foggiest!" Terra exclaimed as she shrugged her shoulders. "I've been able to use magic since I was a baby. I think. I'm not exactly sure…I don't remember. It just seems natural to me that I have the use of this power…"

"But no _human _is born with the powers you seem to have, and…" He trailed off when he saw Terra slow down her chocobo to a halt in reaction to his statement. Both he and Locke did the same and slowly guided their chocobos to where she was. "I apologize. I should've thought that sentence through before I said it. It just slipped out."

Silence fell between them for a minute and Locke's chocobo started to act up. He tried his hardest to get the chocobo to behave, but it kept on walking around. Fortunately, it wasn't distracting to Edgar and Terra's discussion, so he just listened to them speak.

"What should I do?" Her voice was tiny and Locke couldn't help but feel sorry for her.

"I'm not exactly sure if there is anything you _can _do at this point in time." She bowed her head and nodded as Edgar tried to console her. "I'm sure the Empire is going to come after you, that's pretty much inevitable."

Locke chimed in when he finally turned his chocobo around to face the two of them. "But just remember that we won't let anything happen to you! We will protect you with all we've got!"

"Like Locke said," Edgar emphasized for agreement. "I hate to say this, but if they get their hands on you again, the world's finished." Terra whipped her head up in fear and Locke cleared his throat so Edgar would get the hint to change the topic quickly. "Terra, you want to understand your own powers right?"

"I never really considered it a 'power,' so I guess I need to understand what it's about," she replied as she stroked her chocobo's feathers so she wouldn't have to look at Edgar or Locke.

"All right, then I think we need to consult with Banon." Terra stayed silent and shut her eyes.

Locke struggled to move his stubborn chocobo even closer, then was able to put his hand on her arm. "Please…"

Hesitantly, she looked up and nodded at both men. "I guess I really don't have a choice, do I?"

"Of course you do," Locke stated, even though he knew that she didn't. "You don't have to do anything you don't want to do."

"I don't want to see the apocalypse because of me though," she stated and felt the tears spring up in her eyes. "I never want to be responsible for something like that. If they catch me, they'll put that slave crown on my head again and I won't even know what I'm doing. One day I'll just wake up and realize that there's nothing left of this world except Gestahl, Kefka, and the rest of the Imperial army. I never want to see that happen. If this Banon can help me, I want to see him."

"Okay!" Edgar said with a relieved sigh that she agreed. "Banon is at the Returner's Hideout. To the south there's a cave that leads to South Figaro. We'll stop there for supplies then make our way through Mt. Kolts to get to the hideout. How's that sound?"

Terra nodded and they started to make their chocobos trot once again toward the cave.


	7. Vaughn's Challenge

**Yay, another 'in Locke's past' chapter. It's so funny...I wrote this chapter so long ago...it's one of the first ones I wrote to be honest with you, and here I am...FOUR MONTHS after I wrote it! Lol! Well okay, I've edited it A LOT and I like the way it turned out, so it's only appropriate to post it now. Oh yeah, hopefully the posting will be a lot quicker now...knowing I have about 30 chapters fully written. (Seriously though, it's a good thing I waited this long because when the story gets more in depth...You'll see how things are so entwined.) Now that school is almost out, I'll have a lot more time to write as well, so I can put the finishing touches on some chapters, write a few more (but I already have ideas for them, so yay), then post them. God, I talk a lot. My apologies. Okay, here we go. Enjoy!**

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**7. Vaughn's Challenge**

Within three months, Locke's popularity with Vaughn soared and before he knew it, he was right up there with Xane. Whenever there was a new job, Vaughn always called upon Locke first to see if he was interested in looking for it. Although Locke was wary of why Vaughn would ask him and not Xane, he decided not to argue and instead, milk it for all it was worth. Nine times out of ten, Locke leaped at the opportunity to search different parts of the continent for lost treasures. The only times he refused was when he was too tired or worn out from previous searches and would spend the entire day resting and relaxing.

The continent that contained the Quantz hideout became his playground and every day he was able to learn more about it. He knew every part of the Western Continent that he could touch like the back of his hand and he used that to his full advantage. He became familiar with the fiends that roamed each specific part and honed his warrior skills along with his treasure hunting skills.

Now that Locke was a valuable member of Quantz, he was able to go on hunts on his own, but he wasn't able to possess the power to let himself into the hideout. Locke was still in mystery over how Xane was able to put his hand over the rock and form a door and he thought about it constantly. _Magic…_ He thought to himself as he wondered how Xane acquired the power. He asked Vaughn repeatedly if he could learn the trick to that, but the man always replied, "there is no trick," and then quickly changed the subject. The only solution that Vaughn offered to Locke was the same one that he offered to the other men in Quantz; warp stones. Although it slightly bothered Locke that he wasn't filled in with the knowledge of how Xane could perform magic so naturally, he figured as long as he was able to get in and out of the hideout, that's all that mattered.

After another successful search, Locke walked into Vaughn's office to see him writing a letter at his desk. He carefully dipped his pen into the ink well before he looked up to see Locke with a beaming smile on his face. Without a word, Locke placed a small drawstring cloth bag on top of the paper that Vaughn was writing on and sat down in a chair in front of his desk.

"You're back so soon?" He asked as he raised an eyebrow. Locke nodded arrogantly as Vaughn pulled the drawstring loose and let several small relics fall into his hand. "Nice, Locke. And here we were thinking these baubles didn't even exist."

"Come on," Locke retorted as he wiped his hair out of his face and back into his ponytail. "We are talking about me here. If there is a rumor of some great treasure, I just can't let it go. It haunts me until I give in and find it. Call it a curse."

"I'd like to call it a gift." Vaughn tossed one of the relics up in the air and when he caught it, he started to laugh. "Locke, you've been a member of Quantz for only a few months and you've already proven your worth to me. That is incredible."

"Hey, I try," he replied with an overconfident shrug. "You haven't exactly given me any hard assignments so I haven't had a reason to let you down."

"Okay, then." Vaughn's lips twisted into a sly smile as he turned the relic around in his fingers. Locke could practically see the excited thoughts churning about in Vaughn's head. "You like challenges?"

"You better believe I do," Locke bragged as he leaned back in his chair and kicked his feet on top of Vaughn's desk. Putting his hands behind his head, he continued. "There is no challenge that I'm not ready to face."

"I wouldn't go saying that without hearing what I'm about to tell you." The dark haired man pushed Locke's feet off the desk with a chuckle. Locke almost lost his balance, but he luckily was able to grab onto the armrests of the chair and not fall over. "Have you ever heard of the Clemix Diamond?"

By the way Vaughn's eyes sparkled, Locke could tell that this was something that was not to be taken lightly, so he tilted his head upward and narrowed his eyes in interest. "I'm listening."

"Ha, you're gonna love this." Vaughn sat down, placed the relics back into the bag, and tossed it back to Locke. He waited until Locke put the gems away before he explained fully so he would have the young man's complete attention. "The Clemix Diamond has been passed down the VanLente family for a little over a thousand years now and it's worth a fortune. Somehow, one of the VanLente's were able to get their hands on it right before the War of the Magi ended and since then, everyone has been trying to find it and buy it. When you think about it, the more people that want it, the more valuable the diamond becomes. To elaborate even more, basically if you own the Clemix Diamond, you are rich enough to own the entire World of Balance as we know it."

"Really?" Locke rubbed his chin with his hand, deep in thought as he listened to Vaughn speak. "The entire world? That's quite the expensive little jewel they have there. How can it be worth that much?"

"Supply and demand," he said simply as he grabbed a cloth to wipe the mud off his desk that fell off of Locke's boots.

Locke thought about it for a second, and though he was intrigued, he couldn't help but have a suspicious feeling about the entire situation. "If it's worth that much, why hasn't anyone else been able to work their way into the VanLente family and steal it? Why do we have the perfect opportunity?"

"The main reason is because the Baron VanLente, who is the rightful owner now, likes to show off his wealth," Vaughn stated with a chuckle. "His ancestors knew the worth and importance of the diamond, so they kept it locked away and hidden so no one even knew they had it. When I said that people wanted to buy it, I meant that they were trying to find the owner of it so _then_ they could buy it. Its whereabouts remained a secret until the Baron decided to be ostentatious about it and brag about how it's been in possession in the family for that long."

"That thing has been hidden for that long?" Locke questioned as Vaughn nodded. "I don't understand. How can someone keep something like that a secret for a thousand years? People are greedy in this world. You would think that the VanLente's would've leaped at the opportunity to sell it. You have to be shitting me here."

"I shit you not," he said with a chuckle. "The VanLente's were very wealthy to begin with, so they didn't need the money. Plus, they knew the importance of it and didn't want it to get out of their sight."

"What do you mean, 'the importance of it?'" Locke quirked an eyebrow at his boss' statement. "What's so special about it?"

"Wealth equals importance, I guess," Vaughn replied with a shrug. Ignoring Locke's confused look, he continued. "Anyway, the Baron, he…well, he just likes to show off what he has. He decided to show off his stupidity and let the entire world know that he is presenting this wonderful little diamond to his daughter for her 19th birthday tomorrow night. It's going to be some big to-do in Jidoor and I don't think we should overlook this one just because we didn't get our invitations."

"They must've just gotten lost in the mail," Locke quipped as Vaughn nodded and chuckled.

"Yep, that's exactly what I thought." Vaughn looked at the paper that he was writing on and saw that the writing was smeared from when Locke threw the small bag on it. He crumpled up the paper and figured that he would just have to rewrite it. "Damn."

"Oh, sorry about that," Locke apologized as he slightly winced in shame. "I should've thought before I threw my findings at you, but I was so excited that I couldn't hold myself back. What were you writing anyway?"

"If I wanted you to know about it, I would've told you." Vaughn's voice wasn't harsh, it was simply matter of fact as he threw the crumpled paper in the trash bin next to his desk. Locke knew that when Vaughn spoke in that tone of voice, it was better stay out of it and let him do his business. "Anyway, back onto my point."

"Before you finish, I have a question. Now, I'm just curious here; what would a 19 year old girl want with a diamond worth that much money?" Locke tapped his lip as he spoke, causing Vaughn to chuckle again at his observation. "No, I'm serious. That's one hell of a diamond and she's still very young. I'm thinking that she wouldn't want that kind of responsibility, so taking it off of her hands would be the best thing in this situation."

"Locke, your ambition astounds me." Vaughn watched as Locke stood up and bent over to rest his hands on his desk for support. "However, I don't think you realize what a big deal this is. Now that VanLente made the unintelligent decision to let everyone know that he has possession of the diamond, there are going to be a million treasure hunters there tomorrow night. Not to mention that there will be more soldiers at that gathering than there are at Vector, so you will have to be extremely cautious. You'll basically have enough time to get in, steal the diamond, then get the hell out of there before you're caught."

"Am I going alone or with someone on this mission? I'm assuming that some kind of a diversion is going to need to come into play with this one," Locke said as he tapped his fingers against the wooden desk. "I have a feeling that this isn't going to be the easiest task that I've come across."

"You better believe it. However, you're the one who said that you like challenges, therefore, you're going to do it." Vaughn walked over to the table was set up across the room and poured both he and Locke a shot of liquor from one of the bottles. He handed the shot glass to Locke and as Locke was about to put the glass to his lips, he continued. "I'm assigning Xane with you on this one."

"Nice," Locke responded with a scoff as he brought the glass down. He was thankful that the liquid wasn't in his mouth because he was positive that he would've spit it out in shock. He couldn't help the sarcasm that was in his voice, but he knew that he and Xane did not get along. Although Xane saved his life on their first mission, they were always competing against each other to be the best treasure hunter in Quantz. No matter how hard either of them tried, if one came back from a successful hunt, the other wasn't far behind. No matter how many efforts Locke put in to be civil with him, Xane just detested him more. Eventually Locke just stopped associating with him all together to avoid the problems between them. "Every time Xane and I work together we almost come to exchange of blows."

"That's exactly what Xane told me when I explained the mission to him, and I would be lying if I said I haven't noticed the tension. It's sad, really," Vaughn admitted with a sigh as he pointed to Locke with his forefinger. "However, you two are the best I have, so you better not disappoint me."

"I don't know the meaning of the word." He raised his eyebrows then drank the hard liquid, feeling it burn his esophagus as it went down. He tried not to make a disgusted face for he rarely drank, but he figured it was a celebratory drink and decided not to think anything of it. "I'll just ignore Xane and talk my way into that little girl's heart."

"In the three months I've known you and from what I've heard about you, you've got the suave to do it," Vaughn agreed as he took the shot and placed his glass down. "Just remember, you're there to get the diamond then get the hell out of there. That leaves no time for romance."

"What are you talking about? I already know that," Locke said as he motioned for Vaughn to give him another shot. "Anyway, what's the dress code on this? I'm assuming it's black tie for he is the richest man in this world."

"Of course it is," he said, pouring more of the liquor for Locke. "Several kings and queens are going to be there as well, so you better look your best for royalty."

"Kings and queens?" Locke restated as he held his glass up near his mouth. "Ooh, that sounds promising. Are any of them going to have anything with them that I should look out for while I'm at it?"

"Damn, Locke!" Vaughn stated with a hearty chuckle as Locke drank the liquid. "What am I going to do with you? Always striving for more."

"It was just a simple question," Locke said, exhaling as he put the shot glass down. "Besides, I don't like to lead a mediocre life. I tend to live on the slightly wild side."

"That is a perfect reason to why you are an excellent addition to this group." The blond haired man gave Vaughn another smirk as he sat back down. "You and Xane will both need to go by some kind of an alias. Your name isn't incredibly well known yet, but we don't want to take any chances. Xane's is a little more known, and there are certain people who shouldn't be aware of his presence. Make up something believable between the two of you, I really don't care."

"That's workable," Locke shrugged as he crossed his arms across his chest. "Anything else I'll need to know before I jump right in?"

"I don't think so," he said as he sat back down in his chair and thought about it for a second. "No, I think that's about it. I guess I could tell you to be careful and not get caught, but you know all of that already, correct?"

"Of course," Locke responded with a shrug. "I pretty much figured that was a given in any assignment."

"All right then." Vaughn dipped his pen in the well and started to rewrite the letter that he was writing when Locke came in. Without looking up, he continued talking to him. "You have a day to prep. Is that enough time for you?"

"Vaughn, come on!" He couldn't help but scoff at him. "Me, prep? Please. I'll get restless if I don't do something between now and then."

"Dedication is an amazing thing, Locke, but overexertion can kill you." Locke sighed at the older man's warning. "Go get some sleep tonight, you had an excellent day today."

"Night, Vaughn." With a nod of his head, Locke left Vaughn's office and started to walk to his own room. On the way, he saw Xane standing against the wall inspecting his sword with his finger. "Hello, Sunshine!"

"Go to bed. You're going to need your sleep for tomorrow," he replied without looking up from his weapon.

"Oooh, someone's testy tonight," Locke teased as he crossed his arms. He couldn't help but mock Xane with a smile. "What's the matter? Have an unsuccessful hunt today?"

"Like that would ever happen." He inserted a chuckle at the end of his statement and put his sword back in the holster. With a glare he looked back up at Locke. "Now go fuck off."

"Look, just because you're jealous that you're playing my second hand man on this mission when you're used to being the star doesn't mean you have to get all pissed off," Locke snapped as the smile fell off of his face.

Xane laughed sarcastically and rolled his eyes. "I'm in no way your 'second hand man,' thank you very much. Vaughn just knows that you can't do this mission without me."

_What do I have to do to get this asshole's approval! _He thought to himself as Xane harrumphed. "Fine, whatever. I'm going to bed."

"See ya in the morning, _Precious_," Xane said with a smug smile as he opened up Vaughn's door and stood in the doorway. "You better be up and ready by seven o'clock tomorrow night or I'm leaving you behind."

"I'll be ready," he replied confidently as Xane walked into the room and shut the door.


	8. Flirting With The Enemy

**Whoo hoo! Finally this fic is starting to move along! I played around with the order a bit, so that's why this chapter is next. Like I said about the last chapter, this is one of the first ones I wrote...like the second or third actually. I obviously edited the hell out of it so it would be decent enough, but yeah. It's been sitting on my computer for a good five months! It's about time that it came out and faced the world. Not one of my faves...but eh. Oh well. Okay, yay. Expect updates over the next few days! There is like, one road block coming up in a few chapters (yeah, I have to write out the entire chapter pretty much), but otherwise, this fic is about done. :) YAY! I have an idea for a new fic as well, so Gwen is happy. A happy muse is a good muse! Lol, I'm crazy, I know. **

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**8. Flirting With The Enemy**

After his shower the next morning, Locke spent most of the day preparing for the night that he was going to have. He traveled to Kohlingen by chocobo and bought himself a new outfit using the gold pieces that he got in exchange for some of the jewels that he found in the cave the previous day. He figured it wouldn't have been smart to go to Jidoor and buy everything because that was where the party was going to take place and it would possibly blow his cover. He also decided to get his hair cut so it wouldn't look as untidy as usual. It was now too short to pull back into the ponytail, but it was short enough so the ponytail wasn't needed. He figured a bandana would do the trick of keeping his hair out of his face on an everyday basis, but tonight would not be the place.

Upon reaching the hideout, he put on his new clothes, laced up his new boots, and as he combed his hair, he smiled at his reflection. He didn't look like Locke Cole: Treasure Hunter anymore, he now looked like Locke Cole: Nobleman. He was able to hide his dagger underneath his pant leg in case things would go somewhat amiss during the night, thus giving him more comfort in the situation. He heard a slight knock on his door and he looked over to see Xane standing there in the open doorframe. He was also dressed up, but the frown on his face ruined his important appearance.

"You ready, newbie?" He asked as Locke scoffed at him.

"First of all, I'm not a newbie. I've been here for a few months now," Locke started as he carefully tied his bowtie. "Secondly, I think we got off on the wrong foot here."

"Yeah, we did, what's your point?" Xane drawled as he leaned up against the doorframe. "If you're going to start apologizing or saying that we should 'start over' and all that bullshit, I'm not going to listen to you. I highly believe in first impressions, and yours made a lasting impression on my shit list."

"Aww, isn't that sweet," Locke retorted, running his fingers through his hair. "Fine, then let's just get through the night and _act_ like we're civil. If we blow this, Vaughn is going to have our asses, you know that."

"From now on, we know nothing of Vaughn or Quantz, understood?" Locke nodded and Xane continued as he handed Locke a piece of thick parchment paper that had embossed writing on it. "These are our tickets. It's our only way into the party so if you lose it, I will kill you. Don't say a word as you hand your ticket to the guards at the door. Simply nod and move on."

"Got it," Locke said as he put on his new taupe trench coat that he purchased earlier in the day, ignoring the icy tone in Xane's voice. "Have you figured out what your alias is going to be yet?"

"I'm going to go by Wesley Sheridan," Xane announced, tipping his hat. "What about yourself?"

"Kain Atherton," Locke replied as he put on his hat, tipping it in the same style as Xane. "So, do you think we can pull this off?"

"I know that _I_ can, but I don't know about you." Locke felt his face flare up in anger, but he decided not to add more fuel to the growing fire that already burned between he and Xane.

"I can hold my own," he said through clenched teeth. The look on Xane's face didn't loosen up, so Locke sighed and crossed his arms. "Let's just go before we murder each other."

"That can still be arranged, you know," Xane replied with an icy smile as he motioned for Locke to exit the room. "Ladies first."

With a slight growl, Locke let Xane's insult roll off his shoulders and walked out of his room, Xane not far behind.

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When they arrived at the VanLente Mansion in Jidoor, they handed their tickets to the doormen and walked inside to the foyer. _Well, things are going smoothly so far…_Locke thought as he handed his coat and hat to Xane so they could get them hung up. Locke prayed that he would be able to get his coat back and not have to run off without it for it was expensive.

They walked into the grand ballroom, causing Locke's jaw to drop in amazement. It was perhaps the most beautiful room he had ever been in, for everything in it was practically drowned in gold or some other precious metal. There were ice sculptures placed along the edge of the room, surrounded by hundreds of flowers, picture frames were hung on the walls with paintings in them so large that they must've been twenty feet tall apiece, there were at least five hundred people here already all dancing or chatting quietly with one another as waitresses and waiters walked around with platters of hors d'oeuvres and wine. A group of musicians sat in one corner of the room and a jaunty dance piece escaped from their instruments finished up the image of the room. Locke had never seen such an extravagant sight.

Then, Locke saw something more extravagant. At the end of the ballroom, there was a pillar encased in glass and surrounded by at least a dozen heavily armed guards. Several guests gathered around the glass and looked in awe at what was inside. Although he couldn't see the jewel inside, Locke didn't have to ask or walk closer to know what it was; the Clemix Diamond—the goal of the night.

"Look," Xane whispered as he grabbed Locke by the arm to drag him closer. "We split up. Stay discreet and aware of your surroundings at all times. If there is any sign of trouble, stand at the top of that staircase over there and lean against the railing, understood?"

"What happens if I'm being chased by a guard? I won't be able to just say, 'please stop so I can wait for Xane to know I'm in danger,'" Locke asked in a whisper, adding sarcasm to his voice.

"Well, let's hope that doesn't happen," Xane replied with a shrug.

"And if it does?" Locke wasn't one to be worried about things in the middle of a hunt, but he wanted to make sure that this night went as smoothly and quickly as possible. He knew that the longer he and Xane stayed there, the more likely they would be caught.

"If it does, let's hope you're agile enough to survive the battle," Xane replied nonchalantly as he started to walk off. Unfortunately, Xane wasn't able to see the face that Locke made toward him because his back was facing him, but Locke scoffed nonetheless.

_Now what? _Locke asked himself as he started to walk through the crowd. _I have no idea what the hell I'm supposed to be doing! It's not like I can just waltz right up to the guards and ask them to hand me the diamond…I guess I have no other choice than to meander around the crowd for a little bit…_

"Would you care for a refreshment?" Locke blinked in surprise when a waitress came up to him and handed him a drink. She slightly batted her eyes at him and he couldn't help but give her a flirtatious smile.

"Why, thank you, ma'am," he replied as he took a sip from the tall crystal glass. He watched as the waitress walked away, lingering his gaze on her rear end, and ignoring the taste of the wine. He wasn't too fond of the taste of it, but decided to sip it sparingly anyway. He continued his stroll along the edge of the ballroom so he wouldn't interrupt the dancing that was taking place in the middle, and stood by one of the ice carvings. It was in the shape of a swan with its wings in the air, as if it just landed in water. As he studied it, he dipped his finger in the wine and began rubbing the top of the glass, causing it to hum.

"It's beautiful, isn't it?" Locke jumped, practically dropping the glass, before looking at the owner of the voice. To his surprise, it was a beautiful brunette girl looking up at him innocently. She stood a few inches shorter than he, even though she was wearing rather tall high heels. She was in a beautiful baby blue dress, her hair was gently pulled back from her face and adorned with white baby's breath and ribbons, and diamond earrings hung from her ears. Her neck was bare, but the lacing on her low cut dress was enough to distract any man.

"Uh, yeah," he replied after a minute of silence. He was too busy admiring the girl to find words, so he had to focus his attention back on the ice sculpture.

"I've never seen you before," she asked with a shy smile. "Are you from around here, or did you have to travel a distance?"

_Uh oh…_Locke thought as he nervously took a sip of his wine. "You haven't seen me before?"

"No," she replied as she studied him with her eyes. "I think I would've noticed you, so it's obvious that I've never seen you. What's your name?"

"Loc—"_Oh, dammit_…Locke thought as he froze, almost choking on his own name. _I almost just gave away my real name! What was the name that I made up?_ "Lord Kain Atherton." _There, that's enough to convince her…I hope…_

"It doesn't sound familiar." She furrowed her forehead as she thought about it for a second, causing Locke to nervously exhale. "Hmm."

"No?" He asked her, in lack of anything else to say. She gently shook her head and shrugged as she looked away from and reached out toward the ice sculpture.

"Oh well, it doesn't really matter anyway," she said as she fingered the wings on the ice sculpture. "I basically assumed that this would be a group of snobby noblemen anyway. I don't even know half the people here."

"Well, now you know me," he said as she shyly giggled. "Uh, you never told me your name."

"Now I _know_ that this party has nothing to do with me," she sighed as she rubbed her hands together to absorb the water, not answering Locke's statement. With a huff, she continued. "This is fabulous. Not only do I not know half the people here, but they don't even know who I am either! It was just a chance for my father to gather up everyone he's ever met so they could all be the stuffy adults that they are and talk about politics."

"I'm sorry," Locke apologized as she shook her head.

"No need for an apology," she stated as she looked up at him with a smile. Her eyes went wide when the musicians started to play a new piece of music and she slightly bounced on her toes. "Dance with me?"

"D-Dance?" Locke stuttered as she grabbed his hand and started to drag him onto the dance floor. _I haven't danced since I was a young boy! _He thought as she grabbed the crystal goblet out of his left hand and put it on one of the tables that they passed. He swallowed hard as they reached the dance floor; he didn't even get a chance to protest or find out her name.

As a pleasant surprise to himself, he instantly remembered the dance steps and was able to perform them with grace without embarrassing himself. He was quite thrilled that he was able to look into her eyes at the same time; the sparkle behind them kept a smile on his face and he felt nothing would be able to break the moment.

They finished out the rest of the dance and the ending pose resulted in them staring into each other's eyes. Her cheeks started to turn a light shade of pink as she looked away from him. "You're a really good dancer," she said as she stared at the floor.

"It took a minute for me to remember that dance. I haven't done it in so long," he said quietly with a chuckle. She lifted her eyes back to his and shared his smile. "I was afraid that I was going to make a complete fool out of myself."

"You have a really nice smile," she said as she bit her lip. The compliment only made his grin wider and he brushed a tendril of hair away from her face, resting the palm of his hand on her cheek.

"You're beautiful," he blurted as he held her closer to him. The piece was long over, but they still were in each other's arms. He acted on impulse and leaned in to give her a kiss, but she backed her head away and looked at him with complete surprise.

"Lord Atherton," she exclaimed, her voice flustered. Locke noticed as several people started to turn their way and gawk, so he blinked uncomfortably as she stammered. "I-I'm sorry, but I can't kiss you."

"Oh, I didn't mean to make you uncomfortable," Locke said nonchalantly as she removed her arms from him and crossed them over her chest. "I guess it makes sense. I don't even know your name." _And she doesn't even know my real name…Not like that's ever stopped me before, but…Something in this situation is different…_.

"I apologize, I didn't meant to be so abrupt, but I don't want to make a scene." Locke nodded in agreement as he watched everyone slowly turn away from them again. "I really do enjoy your company though. May we talk more?"

"Uh, yeah, of course," he responded, his heart leaping practically out of his chest. _Good, I still can work on this…_

"Well, I don't want to be away from my father for too long, so I figure I will stand around him for a while to make him happy. How about in half an hour? On the top of those stairs?" Locke followed her finger and stared at the spot for a second in confusion.

_Stairs…OH! Secret code for Xane and I! _"How about somewhere else?" Locke asked, trying to be as suave as possible. "I mean, it's a beautiful night, so why don't we meet someplace outside? That way we can also escape what is going on inside."

"You certainly don't speak like a nobleman," she said, looking at him queerly. Locke gave her a nervous smile as she let out a giggle. "Oh, what does it matter, anyway? I'll see you soon?"

"Yeah, that sounds great," he said as he lifted her hand to his lips and gently kissed it. She smiled at him as she walked away and he watched her disappear into the crowd. He put his hands in his back pockets and let his dreamy gaze stay in that direction

"You better watch it." Locke sighed in annoyance as he recognized Xane's voice from behind him.

"Thank you so much, _Wesley_, for ruining the happy moment that I was having," Locke said sarcastically as he grabbed another drink off of a waitress' tray. "Can't you leave me alone for five seconds?"

"Staying away from you for eternity would be equivalent to the best thing in the world, but unfortunately, your little charade just proved that I can't," he snapped as he crossed his arms.

"What are you talking about?" Locke asked with a huff as he sipped the pale pink liquid from his glass.

"I saw you dancing with that girl," he replied, grabbing a glass of wine for himself. "Not only were you dancing with her, but you were making it obvious that you wanted to strip her down right in the middle of the dance. It was a minuet, Locke, not a piece that would be played in a pub."

"Oh, I see, I see," Locke said with a slight chuckle. "First you get pissed that you're my sidekick, and now you're pissed because I get a girl too. That's real mature."

"No," Xane said as he leaned in closer to Locke and lowered his voice. "I'm pissed because you're flirting with VanLente's daughter! The very one we're trying to steal from!"

"Whoa, what? Wait a minute here…" Locke trailed off as he looked back at the crowd of people that surrounded him. The girl was nowhere in sight, so he sighed. "That was…"

"Yes, _that_ was Rachel VanLente." Xane backed away as he took another sip of his drink, leaving Locke to purse his lips together. "We're not here for her; we're here for her wonderful, shiny present that her daddy wants to give her."

"Whatever, it was only a dance," Locke stated, trying to make the situation look as innocent as he could.

"Uh huh, and we're only here for the free booze," Xane retorted, his voice heavy with sarcasm. "All I'm saying is; don't even think about it. You will get us into more trouble with Vaughn than it's worth."

Xane finished his drink and handed the glass to Locke before he walked into the crowd, leaving him speechless.


	9. That Night Under The Stars

**Yay, another update. That's about it. Enjoy! (Just like I will enjoy the ice cream cake for my sister's b-day today! MMMM!)**

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**9. That Night Under The Stars**

Locke looked at his watch to realize that exactly a half hour went by since Rachel walked away from him, so he waited for her on the balcony as he promised. Although Xane told him not to get involved, he felt that by flirting with her, it would make the deal easier. _Not to mention that she's the most beautiful girl I've ever met…_He thought to himself as he leaned against the balcony. _Why do these things always happen to me? I just don't understand it… _

"This was a good suggestion." Locke turned his head to his left to see Rachel wearing a smile and standing a few feet away. "It is a beautiful night."

"That's what I figured," he said with a shrug as he looked up at the stars. "I'm a night kind of guy; I feel more alive at night time than I do in midday."

"I'll agree with you there. It's so much more relaxing. Everything is so rushed in the daytime and at night everything comes to a calm," she stated as she walked closer to him. "Shall we take a walk in the gardens?"

"Yeah, that way we won't be interrupted," he said, half expecting Xane to stomp outside and yell at him to get away from Rachel while she was standing right there. "Wait, you won't be missing anything, right?"

"Daddy is so busy entertaining all the guests with what affairs he's been dealing with that he won't even notice my disappearance." There was a slight hurt to her tone as she spoke, but the smile returned to her face once again as she faced Locke. "Oh well. I'll let daddy do whatever he pleases. Whatever makes him happy makes me happy because he won't complain about everything to me. Come on, let's go toward the gardens."

She linked her arm through Locke's as they silently walked toward the luxurious gardens that were located behind the mansion. There weren't any clouds in the sky that night, so the moon shone brightly, causing the beams of light to be slightly reflected off the smooth cobblestone path. There was a delicate breeze that lingered in the air that played with the shrubbery and swept through Rachel's hair.

"So, I've been trying to figure this out because I'm not exactly sure; is today your real birthday?" Locke asked as Rachel softly chuckled. He was just trying to make conversation and wasn't sure why his question was humorous.

"You wouldn't be able to guess if it was," she said as she sat down on one of the benches, motioning Locke to sit next to her.

"What do you mean?" He was confused at her downcast mood that he furrowed his forehead with worry. "Are you okay? Your mood is so different than the one you had a half hour previous."

"Although this is supposed to be my birthday celebration, it really doesn't seem like it," she admitted as she gripped the edge of the bench and looked outward toward the rest of the garden. She ignored his question, but Locke let it roll off his shoulders. "This is just an excuse so daddy can show his wealth to the rest of the world. To be completely frank with you, I hate the life I'm living. I hate having to be a perfect 'little lady' just because it's expected from me. I don't like to keep quiet around others, I don't like to 'just look pretty,' and most importantly I don't like the feeling that I'm a marionette under the control of my father."

Locke listened in wonder as she vented to him and slowly sat down next to her. She exhaled, shook her head, and looked at her feet for a second. He wasn't sure if he was supposed to chime in with a comment, so he remained silent and let her think out loud.

"I want…I want to go on an adventure someday, you know," she looked over at Locke and smiled with excitement of her thoughts. "I know it sounds insane coming from a girl of my stature and lineage, but I want to find some amazing treasure that no one thought could be discovered. The thrill of that must just be breathtaking."

"You have no idea," Locke found himself saying in agreement. He gasped when he realized what he said and looked off to the side, shaking his head. "D'ah! Sorry, I didn't mean to interrupt."

"No, it's not a problem," she said, placing her hands in her lap. "To finally answer your question, no, it's not my birthday. My 19th birthday was about two weeks ago. Like I said, daddy just wanted to show off that asinine Clemix Diamond to his high and mighty friends, and I personally don't care about it."

"Well that doesn't sound all that fair to you," he replied as she sighed again.

"Did you know that that is all I'm getting for my birthday? Some stupid diamond that I'm not even going to be able to wear? It's pretty much going to stay in the basement all locked up and surrounded by a million guards. I mean, who wants a present that they can't even cherish?" Locke nodded his head in agreement, not even thinking of how he hadn't received a birthday present since his grandmother was alive. "What I'm basically trying to say here is that I don't want presents. I just want my father to care about me again."

"What about your mother?" He felt as if he was prying deeply into her family history, but she hadn't mentioned her. He was rather curious about her ranting, so he decided that digging deeper was a way to get to know more about her.

"My mother? Oh, she died about five years ago," she said quietly as she brushed the grass with the toe of her shoe. "Ever since then, daddy has become very protective of me. I suppose I could even go as far as to say that he's domineering. He has such a strict itinerary of my daily schedule that I never have any say in what I do. If he wants me to practice piano for six hours, I have to do it. I don't argue because maybe he'll be happy if I do what he wants." She sighed heavily again and slowly tilted her head up to face Locke's. "It's funny; things never used to be this way when my mother was alive. We were a very happy family, you know? But then…"

"You don't have to continue about it if you don't want to," Locke said as he noticed tears forming in Rachel's eyes. She brought her hand up to face to wipe away the tears and softly chuckled.

"I'm sorry, I really didn't mean to burden you with all my troubles," she inhaled as a tear fell down her cheek, landing on her gown. "The topic just makes me so frustrated."

"If venting makes you feel better, then by all means, I'm here to listen." He pointed to himself for emphasis and she let out a breathy laugh. "Why cry when I love your smile?"

"You're sweet," she said as she moved closer to him so she could rest her head against his chest. "If I ask you a question will you promise not to be angry with me?"

"Uh, sure," he replied, slightly afraid of what she was going to ask.

"Who are you?" Locke let out a chuckle for he feared she was going to inquire a much more personal question.

"I told you," he said as she looked up at him. "I'm Lord Kain Atherton."

"Where are you from?" _Uh oh, she's prying here…_He thought as he felt his pulse rush.

"Some…place around here," he said slowly as he looked away from her. She narrowed her eyes at him and he had to chuckle as he thought of a believable excuse. "Come on, I'm trying to stay somewhat mysterious here. Where's the fun if you know everything there is to know about me?"

She giggled and trailed her hand up his shirt and started to play with his bowtie. He was starting to become even more nervous by the way she was touching him than her actually finding out his real identity. "I guess you have a point, but since you know so much about me, I think I have the right to ask a few questions. Like, how old are you, Lord Atherton?"

"I'm twenty-three," he said, not liking the way that name rolled off her tongue. _No, don't say it…You can't blow your cover! _"You know, you could just call me Locke." _Dammit, you fool!_ He cursed at himself when he revealed his real name to her, but her mouth turned into a smile at the sound of it.

"Locke? It's very unique. I like it." She thought about it for a second, then slightly frowned. "Wait, why do you go by that name when your name is Kain Atherton?"

_Now you've done it, genius! _Locke thought in his head as he jumbled for an excuse that sounded plausible. "It's just a nickname that I've achieved over the years. Much like yourself, I'm not a fan of authority or titles, so 'Locke' sounds a lot more fun and less stuffy. Adds onto the 'man of mystery' thing that I discussed."

"See, this is what I mean!" She exclaimed as she pointed to him. "I want to lead an adventurous life that's full of mystery and excitement! But instead I'm stuck in this stupid mansion and go through the motions everyday. I wake up, have a professor teach me my lessons, go chocobo riding through the plains a little bit, think about my feeble life that I live, go to bed, and then the whole cycle starts over again. I want to shake things up some."

"Chocobo riding is an adventure in itself. Well, maybe I just think that because chocobos and I don't get along very well. Every time I hop on one, it just tries to kill me," Locke said with a smile. Rachel turned looked down at her toes again, so Locke moved in closer to her. "You should come with me one day."

"Where?" She asked as she innocently looked up at him. "Chocobo riding? Maybe I can give you some helpful hints since I happen to know how to control chocobos."

"Well, okay, that too because I could use some pointers. However, I meant that you should come exploring and find treasures with me," he replied with a nod. Her features brightened as she broke out into a beaming grin. "I love doing that kind of thing. Like you said, it shakes up the normal every day life that we live."

"Maybe I will learn more about you at the same time?" She asked. His smile widened as she innocently looked at him.

"That sounds like a good idea to me." They both slightly chuckled as they leaned in toward each other. Locke put his right hand behind her head and brought her closer until their lips touched. She giggled as he nipped at her lower lip and placed her hand on his arm. Just as he was about to part his lips, she jumped and broke the kiss. He looked at her in question and she whipped her head away from him. "Uh, something wrong?"

Her eyes darted from the different patches of shrubbery and she lowered her voice down to a harsh whisper. "Did you just hear something?"

"Um, no." Locke wasn't paying attention to anything but the kiss, so he didn't hear anything at all besides his heart beating so quickly that he thought it was going to pop out of his chest. He figured she was just uncomfortable by the kiss and made an excuse to break it. He figured he would humor her and listen to the surroundings anyway. To no avail, he couldn't hear anything but the water flowing and the breeze disturbing the shrubbery. "I don't hear anything at all."

To further his confusion, she stood up and started to walk toward some trees that acted as a wall several feet away. He narrowed his eyes and watched her queerly; she was walking as quietly as she could on the cobblestone path so her stilettos wouldn't make any extra noise. In case something was there, Locke didn't want it to attack, so he stood up and walked closer to her.

The trees slightly moved, causing Locke to put his hands on Rachel's shoulders for protection. She placed one of her hands on his as she looked up at him, a grim look on his face. In one swift movement, the trees parted, ejecting a man. Rachel let out a yelp and huddled close to Locke's chest in fear.

"Xane!" Locke cried out when he recognized the man. He scoffed in disbelief as the older man stood up and brushed the dirt off of his suit. Xane was holding Locke's coat and proceeded to shake that dirt and pine needles off of that as well. "You are unbelievable!"

"Good evening, Lord Atherton," he said through clenched teeth, frustrated that Locke revealed his real name. He sighed as he cautiously looked around. "I thought I would find you here."

"That's just great, you found me. Now get gone!" Xane eyed Rachel and noticed the confusion on her face. She kept looking back and forth between he and Locke, but held her gaze longer on Locke. Xane raised his eyebrows at Locke, who turned his head and looked away, then smiled at Rachel, completely ignoring Locke's request to leave.

"Happy birthday, Miss VanLente." He reached out for Rachel's hand and brought it to his lips. Locke's eyes burned at the gesture by Xane, and also at how he ruined the moment.

"Thank you," she responded as she took her hand back and looked up at Locke. "Maybe we should go back inside. My father will be wondering where I went."

"Actually, we were just leaving, isn't that right, Kain?" Xane gripped Locke's arm and he pried him away from Rachel. Just to prove his point, he thrusted the tan trench coat into Locke's hands.

"What? Are you kidding me? I don't think so!" He jerked his arm from Xane's grasp and waited for an explanation. "Why do we have to leave?"

"I came in contact with some people here who weren't too happy to see me, and I'm more than 100 percent positive that they wouldn't be happy to see you either." Xane lifted his eyebrows as Locke exhaled and looked up toward the sky.

"Why me? Why? Why now?" He muttered as he understood that Xane ran into some soldiers who recognized that he was a treasure hunter.

Rachel looked up at Locke and linked her arm through his. "Locke, what's going on?"

"Excuse me, my dear lady," Xane said as he shot a glare at Locke. "There's no time to explain, but fortunately, Lord _Kain_ Atheron here has all the time in the world to explain to me. Let's go, _Kain_."

Locke knew he didn't have any other choice but to follow Xane, who was already starting to walk away. However, before he left Rachel, he gently kissed her on the cheek and whispered, "Can I see you again?"

"Tomorrow," she whispered back as she looked deeply into his eyes. "Meet me right here at midnight."

"I'll be here, I promise." He winked at her as he put on his coat. She smiled back at him and watched as he and Xane walked out of the gardens.

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"What the hell is wrong with you?" Xane demanded when he and Locke left the VanLente property. Locke pursed his lips and shoved his hands deep in his pockets for he knew if he opened his mouth, he would regret it. He knew that he was going to be reprimanded not only for Rachel knowing his real identity, but also for leaving the ballroom where the diamond was. Locke kept his comments to himself as he looked up at the star filled sky and sighed. "You should've just told her how we planned to nab the diamond while you were at it."

"Oh shit," Locke exclaimed as he looked at Xane. "What are we going to do about the diamond now?"

"Simple. I'm going to explain to Vaughn what you did and let him take it from there," Xane explained as Locke gulped. "I hope you know, I have never had to walk away from a hunt before tonight. Roughly translated; I officially hate you now."

"Well, that's just fantastic." The sarcasm dripped off Locke's voice as he and Xane made their way across the plains. "However, I figured that bringing her outside would've made a nice distraction for you to grab the damn thing."

"Flirting with the daughter of the man we're trying to rob wasn't going to help at all," Xane snapped back. "She was the least of my concerns. The guards were my main concern, not a 19 year old girl."

"Well, what did you want me to do?" Locke challenged back as Xane turned his head to the side and spit. "Go flirt with the guards to distract them?"

"It would've been better than throwing yourself at the young Miss VanLente." Locke scoffed at Xane's tone of voice, so Xane mocked him. "Don't give me that attitude. You know damn well that I'm right about this."

"I wasn't trying to make any moves on her. We were just having simple conversation," Locke protested, not sure the truth in his statement. _We did kiss though..._He thought about it for a second then realized that he shouldn't have to be protecting himself. "Wait a second here, why couldn't you go grab the diamond? You would've been able to go back to Vaughn and take all the credit."

Xane became oddly quiet as he looked straight toward the horizon. "That's not the point. I told you, I didn't want to get caught."

"Oh, so I guess this makes me the best treasure hunter in Quantz?" Locke teased as he tipped his hat and smiled at Xane. "I would've gotten the diamond and not taken the easy way out."

"That's beside the point!" Xane stated, more forcefully this time. "Just…drop it, Locke. You couldn't understand."

Locke blinked in surprise at the touchy subject, but his curiosity got the best of him. "Explain it to me. I'm really serious though. We had good disguises, aliases, and it's not like anyone was going to recognize us."

"I don't want to talk about this," he shot back, causing Locke's curiosity to rise even more. "Let's just put it this way; I had to get out of there and I wasn't about to leave you there where you would get so 'caught in the moment' with Rachel that you would've gotten caught by the guards. There were too many Imperial soldiers there and something was bound to happen sooner or later. I made a judgment call."

"Okay, well, if you made a 'judgment call,' you can't go back to Vaughn and blame the entire situation on me." Although Locke tried to be upbeat about the situation, the look on Xane's face made him realize that something was wrong. "Xane, are you hiding something from me?"

"I have nothing to hide," he replied confidently after a moment of silence. "I just wanted to get out of there. Now shut up."

With a chuckle, Locke patted Xane on the back and said, "I'll only shut up if you take an equal amount of blame on this."

"You drive a hard bargain," Xane retorted with a roll of his eyes. The corner of his lips turned up slightly as he shook his head. "All right, fine. The silence would be nice."

"Got it," Locke replied as he and Xane entered the forest that led to the hideout.


	10. The Fate of The World

**Whoo, two chapters in a day! Meeh, I'm not really a huge fan of this chapter. When I first wrote it, it was really short and I wanted to make it longer, and I don't really like what I added. However, I'm too lazy to change it all. The stuff that is actually from the game is okay...but the first part... :sigh: Oh well. I'll get over it. All right, I'm off to write more of some upcoming chapters...**

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**10. The Fate of the World**

"Where are we going again?" Terra asked as she looked between the three men she was with.

"We are taking you to see our mentor, Banon," Edgar replied stately as Terra nodded in understanding. Locke had to chuckle at her for he knew she didn't have a clue to what was going on. "He was the one who sent Locke to find you."

"Oh," she said simply as she looked down at her feet. There was silence between them until she perked her head back up, looked at Locke, and whispered, "Are we there yet?"

"No." He chuckled at her impatience and shook his head. "Almost though. We just have to go around these mountains and then it's to the north."

"Well, are you sure we're not taking the scenic route?" She asked with a giggle. "It's taking us a long time to get here!"

"No, we're taking the most direct route," Locke clarified as he pointed to Edgar. "It's just taking this long because Edgar didn't know his around and got us lost in that damn cave. It wouldn't have taken us two hours in there if we would've turned where I said to turn."

She covered her mouth to stifle her giggles from his statement and Edgar turned his head to see what was going on.

"What's so funny?" Edgar demanded with a raise of his eyebrows as he studied the two of them. Locke and Terra both innocently smiled, and Terra even batted her eyes at him. "All right, you two. Keep your secrets. See if I care."

"It bothers you, Edgar. Then again, it would bother me too if someone was talking about me behind my back," Locke teased as he poked Edgar gently in the arm. "Admit that it bothers you!"

He jokingly glared at Locke and dramatically brushed his hair out of his face. "Ha, right. There is nothing better I like than exchanging secrets and gossiping like a teenage girl."

Terra shrugged her shoulders and put her hands on her hips. "Well, that's not really a hit toward me knowing that I _am_ a teenage girl. So I guess that's not too degrading in my case."

"No, it's not, but I meant it toward Locke as well," Edgar said as he patted Locke on the back. He touched the sleeve of Locke's tee shirt then looked past Locke to focus on Terra. "Next thing you know, we'll be buying him a pretty dress. What do you think, Terra? Do you think it should be pink or purple?"

"Blue's more my color if you couldn't tell." He pointed to his jeans and blue vest to emphasize his statement, resulting in Terra, Sabin, and Edgar nodding. Locke put his hand on his chest and decided to play along. "But, since we are on the topic, I prefer chenille because velvet does _nothing_ for my complexion. Not to mention that it creeps me out," he said as he shuddered at the sound of the word. When Edgar released his shirt, he looked up at them to see the shocked looks on their faces. "What is it?"

"Let me make sure that I heard you correctly. Did you just say that _velvet_ creeps you out?" Sabin asked as Edgar and Terra continued their looks toward Locke. Feeling another shiver run up his spine, Locke slowly nodded. "Velvet? The material? What the hell is wrong with velvet?"

"I have a velvet phobia, so what?" Locke shrugged as he made a disgusted face. "I know, it's strange, but I do. Get over it."

Terra narrowed her eyes at him and placed her hand on the back of his head. "Locke, do you have brain damage or something? I have never heard of anyone being afraid of velvet. That's just bizarre. What don't you like about it?"

"The feel of it, the…sound of it, 'cause, yes, it makes a sound, the look of it, and the list goes on and on. I mean, it's all…It's just velvet-y, I don't know. I really can't describe it," he said as he brushed her hand away playfully.

"So what if a girl was wearing velvet underwear or something?" Sabin asked in a completely serious tone of voice. Everyone's confused looks that were aimed at Locke turned toward Sabin, Locke giving him one as well.

"I…guess it would ruin the mood for me," Locke replied as everyone laughed. He looked at Edgar and clicked his tongue at him. "My my, what did you teach this poor boy when he was younger?"

"He's my brother, I guess it just runs in the family. I really didn't do anything to instigate it." With a sigh he gently pushed Locke, who ran into Terra, almost knocking her over in the process. Sabin luckily hopped out of the way so he wasn't involved in the train wreck as well. Although Edgar initiated it, he still said, "Hey, no flirting, you two."

"Sorry, I just can't keep my hands off her." The sarcasm dripped heavily off of Locke's voice as he playfully made a face at Terra. "You're not wearing velvet underwear are you?" She stuck her tongue out at him, then put her hands on her hips. He chuckled as he turned back to Edgar and continued with, "Besides, O Royal One, aren't you the 'knight in shining armor' who is supposed to be flirting with the damsel in distress?"

"I'm not a damsel in distress, thank you very much," Terra shot back as Edgar only laughed. Locke knew that he made a valid point and Edgar wasn't about to argue with it. "And I don't even own a pair of velvet underwear, just so we're all clear here."

"I'm sure Locke appreciates that," Sabin piped up as Locke rolled his eyes and sighed. "Okay, I'm done making fun of you for that for now, but that's just fucked up, man."

"Well, back onto what you said, Terra; damsel or not, we still want to look out for you," Edgar stated as he walked to the other side of Terra, moving Sabin out of the way. He nonchalantly put his arm around her as he resumed his train of thought. "We know the Empire is out after you and we want to keep you to ourselves. Call us selfish, but it's always nice to have a brilliant and beautiful girl on our side."

"Gee, thanks, Edgar," she said in confusion. She wasn't sure if that was supposed to be a compliment, so she raised an eyebrow as he flashed her a smile. Giggles overcame her, so she shoved him with some force.

"What's so funny?" Locke demanded when he noticed that Terra was eyeing him. "All right! Enough with the velvet fear!"

Tears were starting to form in her eyes from laughter and the others started to catch on as well. "I'm sorry! It's just so hilarious!"

"Okay, children," Sabin scolded as he saw the entrance to the Returner Hideout, which was buried in a cave by the Lete River. "As funny as this is, how happy do you think Banon will be to see you all like this?"

"We'll be good, we promise," Edgar replied as he made a cross over his heart with his finger. After a second, he looked at his younger brother in surprise. "Well, look at you, Sabin; trying to keep us all in line. That's kind of unexpected."

Although he tried to keep his stature, he smiled and shrugged. "I'm just full of surprises I guess."

"You, like, don't have six illegitimate children all over the world, do you?" Edgar asked as Sabin started to laugh. "Not like I would complain because I do want nieces and nephews and everything, but I'm just checking!"

"No, don't worry about that, Edgar," Sabin reassured as he gave Edgar a pat on the back. "I just did some training and stuff. I didn't do anything too extreme."

"Is it bad that I'm a little nervous over here?" Terra asked, slightly interrupting, as she stopped in her tracks. Edgar, Sabin, and Locke turned toward her as she played with her fingers and slightly bit her lip. They were at the entrance of the hideout and she was starting to lose her nerve. "I can't remember anything that's ever happened to me, so how am I supposed to be aware of what's going on with the Empire? I mean, what if he asks me a bunch of questions that I don't know the answer to? Will he…look down on me or something?"

"I don't think that's something that should even cross your mind. The Returners aren't really expecting answers," Locke said as she looked up from her hands and focused on his eyes. "Banon's aware that you were under control of the Empire and that you weren't conscious of what was going on. I think he's more or less just trying to have you understand the situation that we are in. I don't think he's going to want to ask you a million questions."

"He won't try to intimidate you, if that's what you're concerned about." Terra took in a deep breath as Edgar put a hand on her shoulder to comfort her. "We're all here for you, Terra. No one is against you."

Locke rapped the secret knock on the door and the tiny peep slot opened. A man looked out and Edgar waved to make his appearance known and the guard opened up the door, letting them through.

"King Edgar!" He exclaimed as he pointed to their left. "Banon has been expecting you! He told me to direct you and your guests to his room whenever you arrived. This way, please!"

Locke, Edgar, Sabin, and Terra followed the guard to a closed door, where he stopped once arriving. He nodded his head and the four of them went through the door.

"Banon!" Edgar cried out in greeting when he saw the elderly man standing at the opposite end of his room, inspecting the library of books in his bookcase. He was clearly waiting for them to return with Terra. "We brought the girl with us."

Banon slowly turned around as his four visitors spread out so he could get a better look at Terra. Banon walked closer to the young woman and investigated her as if he were inspecting a criminal who had just committed murder. Locke saw her face flush as she became more nervous and self conscious, and Banon mumbled, "Is she the girl who can talk to Espers?"

Terra blinked several times in confusion as the man continued to look at her. She made a quick sideways glance toward Locke and Edgar for support as she repeated the word, "Espers…!" The word had a familiar sound to it in her mind, but she wasn't sure if she remembered it only from being controlled by the Empire or if there were other reasons.

Locke exchanged glances with Edgar and Sabin to see that they, too, noticed how uncomfortable Banon was making Terra. Edgar, feeling that Banon wasn't aware of it, took it upon himself to speak up. "Seemed the Empire had complete control over her."

"I-I'm sorry, sir," Terra stammered as she backed away from Banon and bowed her head. "I'm trying to understand and remember everything, but the only thing I can remember is my name. I wish I knew…more…"

She trailed off when Banon turned away from her and started to walk toward his bookshelves again. Locke looked at Terra and could see the color drain out of her face, and he felt his heart sink. He wasn't sure what she was thinking, but he was afraid to interrupt the silence to ask her. "Carrier pigeons brought word that she wiped out 50 of the Empire's best soldiers in a few minutes."

Shocked from the accusation, Terra moved further away and bowed her head as she fought back the tears that burned her eyes. "That's a lie! I would never hurt anyone!"

"Terra!" Locke cried out as he ran to her side. He put his hand on her shoulder as he looked to Edgar for some reinforcement.

"Banon!" Edgar cried with a few steps toward their mentor. "Please! She doesn't remember _anything_!"

"Stay where you are!" The old mentor stated firmly as he made his way closer to Terra. Locke took his hand off of her shoulder, giving her a look that it was okay to turn around. With a slight sniff, she faced Banon and he gently smiled at her. "I'm not a wonderful story teller, but perhaps you've heard this story? Once when people were pure and innocent, there was a box they were told never to open. But one man went and opened it anyway. He unleashed all the evils of the world: envy…greed…pride…violence…control…All that was left in the box was a single ray of light: Hope."

The young girl was silent as she absorbed the meaning of his words, still slightly confused of where he was going with them. She looked at Locke for some kind of verbal response, but he only smiled at her.

"We now confront those evils," Banon continued with a nod of his head. He leaned down a little bit so he could look into her eyes and he gave her a gentle smile. "And you are that one last ray of light, our only hope."

Edgar saw the flash of fear enter Terra's eyes and walked up to Banon. "Banon!" He leaned over and whispered harshly, "You are going to scare the poor girl away if you tell her that the fate of the world rests in her hands! That's a hell of a lot of responsibility for her to deal with! You can't throw this at her, _especially_ when she can't remember anything that has happened in her entire existence!"

Instead of agreeing or disagreeing with the young king, Banon let out a sigh and faced away from the group. "I'm so tired. Let me rest awhile."

With an uneasy look exchanged between Locke, Edgar, and Sabin, they all walked closer to Terra as Banon left the room to his bedchambers. Locke could see that she was shaking like a leaf, and he assumed it was because she was very scared as she analyzed Banon's words.

"Did he really mean that?" She asked in a small voice as she looked at her feet. She nervously dug her toe into the dirt floor as she continued to speak. "Am I the only hope?"

"I wouldn't say '_only'_ hope," Locke started as he tried to comfort her. He looked at Edgar and he only shrugged and shook his head. Locke knew that Edgar was right; she was the only hope for the world for she was the only one within grasp with any knowledge of magic and Espers. He sighed and continued with, "Let's think about this later. For now, why don't you get some rest? I'll let you stay in my room. It's been a big day for you."

"Good call. Why don't you guide her there?" Edgar suggested and Locke agreed with a nod. "I'm going to discuss some other things with the rest of the Returners. You can join us when you know she's safe. "

"I'm going to go take a look around," Sabin said as he quickly ran off. Locke, Terra and Edgar all blinked in surprise as he whipped around.

"He certainly hasn't changed much," Edgar muttered as he watched his zealous younger brother exit the room. "Still loves his independence. Anyway, have a good night, Terra. Think things over."

"Thank you, Edgar," she replied as he walked out of the room, then she turned to Locke.

"Shall we?" He asked her as he motioned toward the door with his arms. She nodded and he started to guide her to where she would be staying. He figured that she would feel more comfortable in his room and he could find somewhere else in the hideout to sleep for the night. _That is, if I even sleep tonight. I have a very strong feeling that sleeping isn't an option…_He thought to himself as he opened the door for her.

"Thanks," she whispered as she walked into the room. He watched her as she sat on his bed and stared at the wall. He couldn't find the right words to say, but he stayed in the doorway anyway. "Wow. Lots of decorations here."

Locke looked at his bare walls, smiled, and rolled his eyes at her. "I haven't had a lot of time to make the place more homey, I'm sorry. I didn't move in that long ago. I'm actually surprised that I remembered the way."

"You know I'm just teasing you, it's lovely. Simple, but lovely," she stated, her face forcing a smile as she rubbed her arms with her hands. "Besides, I really do appreciate you letting me stay in your room and all."

"Oh, it's nothing," he replied with a wave of his hand as he leaned against the doorframe. "I want you to be comfortable."

"What about you?" He was touched by her concern and he smiled at her. "I do feel kinda bad about kicking you out of your room."

"You're not kicking me out of my room. I voluntarily gave it up." He raised his eyebrows as he looked up at the ceiling. "I probably won't sleep that much tonight anyway. I might just go on a walk or something. I'm really antsy tonight; too much energy."

"Why?"

"Dunno," he said with a shrug of his shoulders as he started to leave the room. "I just feel really restless at times like these. I have a tendency to think too much and then I stay up all night. I think it's in my nature. In any case, try your hardest to get some rest tonight."

He saw her nod her head and he was about to shut the door when he heard her voice. "Hey, Locke?"

He froze in his tracks for a second, then cracked the door enough to poke his head in. "Yeah?"

"Um, I don't want to try to sound like the 'damsel in distress' that I vehemently said that I wasn't earlier today, but your promise still holds right?" He opened the door and leaned against the door frame again to see her turn away and kick off her shoes. She looked back over at him as she ran her bare toes against the wooden floor. "You know, where you'll stay with me until I get my memory back? I'm kinda scared right now."

Pain struck in his heart as he heard her words, so he walked into the room and shut the door. She slowly looked back down at her hands that were in her lap as he made his way over to her bed and knelt down in front of it. As carefully as he could, he put his finger under her chin and lifted her head up so she would look at him.

"I won't leave you," he stated, his voice firm and very confident. "I can't begin to imagine what you're going through right now, yet alone imagine you going through it without someone there for you. I'll always be here for you. I won't let anything happen to you. That I can promise."

She exhaled in relief and let out a tiny smile. "You have no idea how happy that makes me. I feel safe around you. I don't know why, but I do. It's like…Even though I don't know you all that well, I don't feel alone when I'm with you." Locke's smile slid off his face as she spoke, and after a second of silence, he rose to his feet and looked off to the side. "I'm sorry, did that come off too strong or something? I…didn't mean to scare you off."

"No, no, that's…um, that's not it," he replied softly as he felt his past overtake his mind like a sharp knife through his heart. _"I feel safe around you. Like you'd never do anything to hurt me…" _With a sharp inhale, he turned away from her and started to walk back to the door. "I'll protect you."

He could hear her drum her fingernails against the headboard of the bed in thought as he reached for the door knob. "Locke, are you okay? Did I say something wrong?"

"No, sorry, I'm just a little jumpy tonight, that's all." He looked over his shoulder to see the confused look linger on her face. "Okay, I'm going to go take that walk. I really need it now."

"Well, are you _going_ to be okay?" She asked him as he forced a smile. "That's a fake smile, Locke. It's going to bother me if you don't tell me what I said wrong."

"Terra, seriously, out of all the events that are occurring right now, this is the least of our worries," he began to explain as he retied his bandana around his head. "This is more of a personal thing that I have to overcome myself than drag everyone else into it. Believe me, I've done that way too many times."

"Well, I have no choice but to respect your privacy. It might not mean much because I don't know what you're talking about, but if you ever want to explain it to me, I'm here to listen." He brought his hands back down by his side and looked over at her. She was smiling at him, he assumed to bring up his spirits, and she looked so innocent. _She's so young…she doesn't have a clue to what is going on around her…_

"Thanks, it means a lot," he responded as he put his hand on the door knob, twisted, and opened the door. Before leaving, he looked over his shoulder to her again. "However, this is one of those things that I don't like to talk about. No offense, but…"

"Oh, I understand," she interrupted cheerfully as she nodded her head. "But, just so you know, the offer is always open."

"Again, thanks, but don't expect me to vent about it," he replied with a sincere smile. "Sweet dreams." With that, he flicked off the light and shut the door.


	11. A Meeting With Banon

**Much like the last chapter I posted, parts of this I like, and parts I'm not too fond of. The problem is, I was going to try to fix it...but everything flows so well that I couldn't find a good 'cutting' spot. Oh well. I'm really quite happy how the actual 'meeting' part ended up, so yay. I couldn't cut the Locke/Terra conversation because it's important to a chapter that's coming up rather soon...Actually now that I think about it, I think it's the next chapter. :looks: Yep, it is. Oh yay, I planned that well! Lol...I'm shutting up now, I promise.**

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**11. A Meeting With Banon**

The next morning, Locke was sitting at the edge of the Lete River as he watched the sun rise. He hardly slept that night, if at all. _What is the Empire doing to my life…_ He thought, resting his arms on his knees and looking down at the flowing river. The thought of the closest people who have touched his life couldn't escape him. _The Empire is bringing people down one by one. Soon there will be nothing left…_

With a heart full of memories, he stood back up and took a final glance at the sunrise before walking to his room. He knew that Terra was still sleeping, but he wanted to make sure that she was safe. As quietly as he could, he opened the door, just letting enough light from the room he was in to seep through the small crack. Leaving the door open slightly, he walked closer to see her rolled on her side hugging her blankets so tightly that her knuckles were turning white. Her face was pale, as if all the color had been drained from her cheeks. _No doubt from nightmares…_He thought as he walked to the other side of the room.

_I wish I wouldn't have dragged her into this…_He thought, rubbing his forehead with his fingertips. A slight moan was heard from over his shoulder causing him to turn and look in Terra's direction. She was shifting and mumbling something in her sleep. He wasn't sure what she was saying, but by the way she was saying it, he was assuming that it wasn't a good thing.

He rushed to her and began to shake her shoulders to wake her up. "Come on, Terra, wake up," he whispered gently. Instead of fluttering her eyes open, she started to toss more violently and tears started to stream out of her eyes. "Terra!"

"No!" With a gasp, her eyes flew open and she grabbed onto Locke's arms with her hands.

"It's okay, it's okay!" He told her as he wrapped his arms around her and brought her into a hug. "It was only a dream, Terra."

She was shuddering from her tears as he gently rocked her back and forth and rubbed her back with his hand. She buried her face into his shirt as she spoke. "I keep having nightmares about things. They're so real…I don't know if I'm just reliving past events or if I'm literally just having nightmares about things. I don't remember anything. I don't know what my life has been like…"

"Shhh, it's okay," he said to her as he continued to run his hand up and down her back to console her. "I'm here. Everything is going to be okay."

"How can you promise that?" She asked as she put her hands on his shoulders and backed away. Wiping her tears away, she let out a sigh. "You don't know what has happened in my past. Hell, I don't even know what happened, so how could you?"

"Like I told you yesterday night," he began with a serious look on his face. "I don't know what has happened. But I won't leave you. I don't want you to go through this alone."

She stood up and rubbed the back of her neck with one of her hands as she thought about what he said. "The entire Imperial army is searching for me. The more I think about it, the more I think I should just turn myself in."

Locke jumped off the bed onto his feet and he rushed over to her. "No, you can't do that. Don't even _think _about doing something like that."

"Why not?" She asked, tears still brimming in her eyes. "They're gonna find me anyway."

"First of all, no, they're not." He walked toward his bookshelf and gently fingered the spines of a small collection of books that were stacked on top of one another. He looked over his shoulder at her and felt guilt strike his heart. "Not…while I'm around."

"The second point?" She questioned as she walked closer to him. He didn't speak, so she continued her statement. "You said 'first of all.' Usually there is a 'second' and sometimes a 'third' point that follows too."

"The second, third, and even forth reasons explain a lot about who I am and why I'm in the Returners," he stated simply with a shrug. Instead of continuing, he turned toward her again and hit his leg gently with the palm of his hand. "It's not important. Um, besides the nightmare, how else did you sleep?"

"Not very well." She walked in front of Locke to look him in the eyes but he only turned away again. "You deliberately changed the subject. What is it?"

"Nothing," he lied as he looked down at the wooden floor. He felt guilty for the whole situation and couldn't look at her. "Is the dream memory gone now?"

"You know, since you brought it up and it piqued my curiosity, I realize that you never explained your motives for being in the Returners," she said, ignoring his question. He briefly looked her in the eyes then looked away. "Why can't you look at me?"

"Someone important to me was jailed by the Empire. I've hated the Empire ever since," he explained through clenched teeth, only briefly describing one of the many things that the Empire has done to him personally. _I'm not even going to mention the main reason…or the reason why I want to protect her…_He thought as he sighed. "I joined the Returners when I realized the Empire was rotten to the core. I wanted to make a difference."

She bowed her head in shame as she quietly said, "But…I used to work for the Empire."

"Against your will." He finally faced her and placed a finger under her chin to lift up her head. "You didn't have any idea what you were doing, so according to Banon and the rest of the Returners, myself included, you didn't work for them. You were used by them."

"I'm still responsible for all those people I killed." Locke watched as a single tear fell from her eyes onto the floor. "All those people…"

"How do you know that's even a fact?" He asked as he brushed the water from her tear-streaked face. "Like you said, you're not sure if those nightmares you've had are even based on past events. It could just be your imagination playing tricks on you from what other people and letters have said."

"I don't think carrier pigeons would lie," she started as she looked away. "All those people I've killed…I robbed their families of them."

"Terra, listen to me." His voice was stern and he trailed his finger against the side of her face. Instead of listening to him, she started to speak.

"Your motivation for being in the Returners is because, like you said, someone was thrown in jail," she blinked as she wiped the tears from her eyes, keeping her head down. "I don't even know who I am or where I come from. One day I hope to find out, but…I have no significant 'other' in my life to help me figure it out. At least, not that I know of."

"That's not entirely true." The lost look in her eye broke Locke's heart for that was a look that he had seen before. He forced a smile and resumed his train of thought. "Banon, myself, Edgar, and so on…we're all going to help you figure out your past. Besides, I'm sure there are people who feel _you're_ important to them! They're counting on you."

"Yeah, like the Empire," she retorted sarcastically with a shake of her head and a sniff.

"No, that's not what I meant. I'm talking about the Returners, the people in this world…me." He could tell he wasn't convincing her at all for her words all revolved around the past that she knew nothing about. "Speak to Banon, Terra. He can explain things more thoroughly to you then I can. I'm only the messenger."

"Very well," she said with a nod as she headed toward the door. "Are you coming with me?"

"I will in a minute," he replied as he sat down on the bed. "You can go talk to Edgar if you'd wish. Nothing will harm you as long as you're in the hideout."

With another nod, she exited the room, leaving Locke alone.

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"Locke, are you in here?" Locke turned to the gentle knocking at his door and watched Edgar walk in. He was sitting on his bed with his elbows resting on his knees and his head in his hands, just thinking, and he had been for a few hours. "Banon requested that we go the meeting that he's organized in the conference room."

"Where's Terra?" Locke asked with a sigh as he stood up. "Is she alright?"

"She should be fine," he answered with a slight shrug. "She talked to me for a while and explained her nightmares and such. I'm glad that you were there to wake her up before they finished. Oh, that poor girl. I feel as if we're getting her involved in something much bigger than Banon is telling us."

"You get that feeling as well?" Locke asked as he walked closer to Edgar, who nodded. "Do we even know what this meeting is about? I don't want him to scare the shit out of Terra again like he pretty much did yesterday when he first saw her."

"No, unfortunately I don't know what it's about," Edgar stated as he gestured toward the door. "Oh well, that's not in our control, nor is it our place to argue. Let's go."

Locke and Edgar made their way to the conference room to see the Returners, Sabin, and Terra around the large rectangular table. Everyone was talking amongst themselves and Locke sat in the empty seat that was next to Terra. She was silent and looking down in her lap. Locke was just about to ask her how she was doing, but Banon started to walk down the stairs toward the table.

"Right," he started as he faced them all. "We all know that the Empire is using Magitek power in battle. The point is, how has the Emperor created it?"

"I had Locke look into the rumor that the Empire is forcing the world's finest scholars to study Espers," Edgar announced immediately as Locke nodded. "They have scholars from Kohlingen, Jidoor, South Figaro, and Thamasa holed up at Vector. There might be more, but that's all Locke was able to find out."

Banon walked over to Locke and rested his hands on the table. "Thamasa, eh? Hmm. That's odd." He lightly hit the table with his fist a few times in thought, then narrowed his eyes between Locke and Edgar. "Were the scholars taken against their will?"

"I wasn't able to get a lot of the details," Locke explained in an apologetic tone. "However, I did hear that some of them were bribed with gold. Regrettably, that's all some people need in this world; a little cash incentive and they jump on it."

"Ahh, what a wonderful world we live in today," one of the Returners mumbled under his breath as he folded his arms.

"Yep, not only is that true, but all the trouble in Narshe is over an Esper, too." Locke could see that Terra was looking at him out of his peripheral vision, but he kept his gaze directed toward Banon. "Something about an Esper that was frozen in the mountains or something like that."

"Wait a second," Terra said as she looked between Locke, Edgar, and Banon. "You mean there's some connection between Espers and Magitek?"

"I can only recall one thing linking Espers with Magitek power…" Banon trailed off as he turned his back toward the table, letting everyone absorb his sentence.

"You don't mean…" Edgar was the first to find the words that everyone was searching for.

"Indeed!" Banon whipped around to face them and placed his hands back on the table. "The ancient War of the Magi…"

"No!" One of the Returners cried out of shock.

"It can't be!" Another Returner stated as everyone else looked at each other.

"My Grandma used to tell me stories about magical machines," Locke began as he rubbed his chin with his hand as he remembered his early childhood. "All those stories about them; could they have been true?"

"Could that ancient tragedy be playing out once again…" Edgar didn't mean to speak out loud, but it squeaked out, causing everyone to whip their eyes toward his rash observation.

"It's just speculation," Banon admitted with a shrug. "But, historical studies have provided a number of conflicting and frightening theories…" The man trailed off again as everyone waited in anticipation.

"Like what?" Sabin asked, unable to handle the suspense.

"Well, there have been too many to name them all, but according to one theory, humans and machines were imbued with powers drained from Espers…That's the one that seems to make the most sense at this point in time," Banon explained, causing Locke to sink back in his seat.

_Magic from the expense of an Esper…_He thought as he closed his eyes and sighed. _Oh, damn…_

"That could explain Magitek power…" Terra mumbled as she pulled a stray tendril of hair behind her ear.

"Here's a problem," Edgar brought up as he put his ankle on his opposite knee. "As Terra, Locke, and I were walking this way, we ran into several Magitek soldiers. Our swords and weapons did basically nothing, resulting in us having a hell of a time fighting them off. It seems as though we can only fight Magitek enemies with Magitek weapons…"

"Heh, maybe Kefka's not as big of a dumbass as we all thought," Locke quipped with an ironic chuckle as he shook his head. "When you think about it, the Imperial army is the only one with this kind of power."

"This war will need more than simple steel swords." Banon shook his head and sighed. "I fear that man made weapons aren't going to suffice to our needs."

"What about magic?" Terra asked, looking at Banon sheepishly. "I used a fire spell and that seemed to help and do quite a bit of damage."

"We need to fight magic with magic," Locke mumbled, just loud enough for everyone to hear him.

"What was that?" Banon asked as Locke shrugged his shoulders. "No, say it again."

"I just said that we need to fight magic with magic," he repeated as he shook his head. "I just heard it from a few people recently. I'm guessing since more than one person mentioned it to me over the last few weeks, it's probably true."

"Well, what about me?" The tone in Terra's voice wasn't confident, but by the way she was sitting, Locke figured she felt obligated to speak up. "It's obvious that I have magic power. I'm not exactly sure what it all means, but I seem to have enough power to wield it properly."

"The only thing I'm worried about is that there are a lot of people who aren't ready to accept the fact that people are able to use magic," Edgar stated as he exhaled. "Heh, yeah, like Terra said, she performed a fire spell, all right…scaring the living hell out of me in the process."

"But, you do know it's the power that we're going to need here," Banon said as he raised an eyebrow. As he spoke, he walked closer to Terra, his eyes focused on her. "It's risky, but if we have Terra…speak with that Esper, it might just wake up…"

Terra felt everyone's eyes fall on her and she bowed her head, blushing. Edgar looked over at Banon. "You want to wake up the Esper? I wonder if that's wise…?"

"Who can say?" Everyone slightly frowned at how Banon was nonchalantly thinking about making such a large risk. "We won't know its power until it's awake."

"Banon, I don't mean to be rude here, but this might not only harm Terra, but maybe something can go haywire and harm the entire world…" Locke couldn't help his outburst, and a disapproving look from Banon made him trail off.

"Regardless, we need Terra's help." Banon looked directly at Terra, who still was looking into her lap.

Locke turned in his seat to fully face the young woman. His voice was soft and comforting as he spoke. "Terra…This is your decision and yours alone. Like I said, we're not going to pressure you do anything you don't want to do."

A confident smile appeared on her face as she looked up at Locke. "I'll do it! I mean, what have I got to lose?"

"What nonsense!" Sabin said with a chuckle as everyone else let out relieved sighs. "You sound as if you're enjoying this!"

"Well, I wouldn't say that, but…" she blushed slightly as she looked at Sabin and everyone's grins. Everyone's faces dropped as they heard the door to the hideout open, and they all turned to that direction to see what was going on.

"What? What's that noise?" Banon asked frantically. He looked toward the entrance and saw one of the Returners looking extremely pale in face and very weak.

"Emergency! Sir Banon…" The man collapsed face first onto the floor, eliciting gasps from everyone else. As quickly as they could, everyone ran to the man's side, except Terra. She gulped as she sank into her seat, overhearing the man's wavering voice. "S…South Figaro…"

"Dammit!" Edgar exclaimed as he slightly stomped his foot in frustration. "Kefka, that bastard! All my people…"

"What's going on? What happened?" Banon knelt down next to the fallen man, who was heavily gasping for air. Terra finally was able to find the strength to move and ran up to everyone.

"E…Empire…took Figaro…Coming…this way….unnnh…" He shuddered in pain, his breathing heavily labored. Locke looked at Terra, who was in absolute horror of what was happening.

Banon understood what had happened immediately and looked up at everyone who was standing. "They've found us. We have to leave, we haven't a moment to lose!"

"Locke!" Edgar and Locke looked at each other at the same time.

"I know…" Locke replied with a smile. "'Someone' has to sneak into South Figaro and slow the Empire down, right?"

"That's right up your alley! Good luck!" He patted Locke on the shoulder as some other members of the Returners lifted up the fallen man and started to carry him toward the infirmary.

"Thanks," he said as he faced Terra. He didn't want to leave her when he promised her that he would protect her, but he knew that he had to investigate what was going on in South Figaro and hopefully distract them from finding the others. _So I guess I'm adjacently protecting her…_he thought as he looked into her eyes. _I'm just not going to be by her side…_ "Terra…Please wait for me."

"Of course I will," she said with a confused look on her face. "I trust that you'll come back."

"I won't go back on my promise," he smiled to confirm his statement. He started to walk toward the door, but turned toward her again. "Oh, and…please…don't let a lecherous young king, who shall remain nameless, near you!"

"Locke!" Edgar cried out to Locke, who only laughed. Terra giggled as well and moved out of the way so Locke could get through. Edgar looked at Sabin and frantically asked, "I'm not lecherous, am I? I try not to be!"

As Locke started through the door, he could hear Sabin say, "Big brother…aren't you EVER going to grow up?" He chuckled as he walked out of the Returners hideout and made his way to the town of South Figaro.


	12. Coming Clean

**Yay, another 'in the past' chapter...and this chapter is the reason why I changed Rachel and Locke's ages...lol. In all honesty, I almost changed their ages again...but I guess it works out. Okay, I'm going to get back to watching a shirtless David Boreanaz! (Yay! I'm watching old episodes of Buffy the Vampire Slayer...I haven't watched this show in years...but I still know all the words to the third season!) P.S. Sorry this chapter is rather lengthy...**

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**12. Coming Clean**

"And where do you think you're going?" Locke whipped around to see Xane standing in his doorway, watching Locke's every move in disgust. Locke was tying his new bandana around his head as the final touch to his look, and rolled his eyes when Xane leaned against the doorframe.

He reached over to grab his coat and exhaled at the older man's presence. "What do you want, Xane?"

"Are you going back to the VanLente's?" He asked, causing Locke nodded. With a smug smile, he crossed his arms and leaned against the doorframe. "Ah, I see. Are you trying to redeem your good status with Vaughn and get the diamond all by yourself without taking me?"

Locke pursed his lips when he remembered how disappointed Vaughn was at the two of them when they returned the previous night without the diamond. He had never seen anyone change from happy to completely livid in the matter of three seconds like Vaughn did when he saw them come back empty handed. His face turned a dark maroon color before he went into his office and slammed his door.

"I'm not going back for the diamond," Locke clarified as he put his coat on over his shirt. "I'm going to go straighten things out with Rachel."

Xane's eyes went wide and he slammed the palm of his hand against the doorframe, causing the wall to shake a tiny bit. "That's even worse! You are such a dumbass! Are you aware of what Vaughn would do if he found out that you were courting Rachel VanLente?"

"I never said I was courting her, I just said that I wanted to straighten things out with her," Locke explained with a shrug. "Besides, Vaughn doesn't need to know about this. I'm not going to tell him, so that means that you should keep your mouth shut as well."

"What would I even say to him anyway?" Xane asked as Locke buttoned up his coat. "I won't say anything, but you're not thinking clearly."

With another shrug, Locke walked toward Xane to exit the room. "Yeah, I know I'm not. This is just eating up at me though and I can't leave it the way it is."

"Well, I suggest you get over it," Xane said, almost as a warning. Instead of answering, Locke walked past him and started toward the exit of the hideout. "Oh, by the way, while you're out, you might want to buy a new shovel as well," he told him with a sarcastic laugh. "You're going to need one to dig your own grave out back."

"Very funny," Locke said without the slightest trace of amusement in his voice. He didn't even bother breaking his stride or looking back. "I just need to run over there and then I'll come right back. If you must know, I won't be gone long."

"And you think I care because…?" Xane asked, raising his eyebrows. "Go ahead, I'm not going to try to stop you. I'm just thinking that you're doing something really stupid."

Once again, Locke didn't look over his shoulder when he shouted back, "Then that's my own fault, isn't it?" Without an answer from Xane, Locke grabbed the warp stone that was in his pocket, held it up in front of him, and warped to the outside.

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When Locke arrived at the VanLente mansion, there was an odd feeling in the air. He slowed down his pace and changed his confident stride to one of caution. The church bell rang in town, signaling that it was midnight; the time that Rachel told Locke to meet her in the garden. He let out a chuckle and muttered, "How cliché, Locke." However, there were many guards on post surrounding the mansion and he wasn't sure how he was going to sneak in unnoticed.

_Well, standing around twenty feet away doesn't look conspicuous…_He thought as he continued to walk right up to the closest path. _Maybe they'll just let me pass. In any case, they better get used to me…_

"Halt!" Locke stopped with a sigh when he heard the nearest guard's voice ring through the sky, disturbing the stillness in the air. He looked down at his feet to see that the toe of his boot had barely touched the cobblestone path.

Without shifting his stance, he turned his head to see the soldier with his gun aimed for him. Making a slight clicking sound with his tongue, he shook his head and chuckled. "You don't want to shoot me."

"No, sir, I don't want to, but orders are orders. Especially tonight," the guard stated, causing Locke to blink at the context of his statement.

"What makes tonight so different than other nights?" He questioned as the guard shook his head, motioning that he wasn't going to give a direct answer. "Sorry, I have a horrible tendency to pry. I was born with overcurious genes or something. Blame my parents. However, since I did ask, I would like to know."

"Not likely," the guard replied with a laugh. "Now get out of here."

Locke took a few steps forward and with a shrewd smile said, "Make me."

"Wait!" Locke and the guard both turned their attention to the female voice that was heard from the path. It was Rachel with a shawl wrapped around her shoulders to shield out the chilly night air.

"Good evening, Miss VanLente." The guard saluted as he brought down his weapon. "It's rather late. You know you shouldn't be out in the gardens on a night like this—"

"There's no need to patronize me," she stated firmly, holding her hand up to stop him. "Let this man pass through."

"Begging your pardon, miss, but your father laid strict rules regarding you staying in your chambers tonight and also," he sent a glare to Locke, "that no one may enter the vicinity of the mansion."

With a sigh, Rachel put her arm through Locke's and started to guide him away from the guard. "If my father questions, just tell him that if he still wants a daughter in the morning he will abide my decision to bring this man in the 'vicinity of the mansion.'"

Locke looked back at the guard to see him hesitantly nod, then regain his guarding posture. Rachel kept her gaze straight ahead, an icy appearance to her eyes. "Are you okay?" He asked her as she nodded.

"I'm fine," she responded, guiding him past the gardens and closer to the house. "I just don't appreciate how my father laid all these ground rules for tonight."

He was about to comment on her statement, but she led him up the steps to the back entrance of the mansion, throwing him off guard. "Uh…Where are we going?"

"I'm taking you inside." Her response was short, almost sharp. Locke thought that was going to be the only thing she was going to say, but she continued with, "I don't think we should be outside tonight. It's not safe for either of us."

"What's going on?" She placed her finger over his lips to silence him as she quietly turned the handle on the door that they reached. After poking her head out, she realized that no one was in the room, so she opened the door all the way.

Without another word, she led him up to her bedchambers, shut the door, and locked it, leaving Locke bewildered. She let out a lengthy exhale as she put her back to the door and looked up at him. "I apologize for all of that. It's usually not this crazy around here, but my father's just a little worried."

"Don't worry about it," he told her, although he was quite worried himself. "I just want to know what's going on. I don't think I've ever seen that many guards around this place."

"It's because, like I said, my father is terrified and I guess he has a right to be. I mean, you never know who you can and can't trust." By the sound of her voice, it was evident that she was just as scared as she made her father out to be. Although Locke blinked in confusion, he walked up to her and trailed his finger down the side of her pale cheek.

"Do you want to tell me what happened? Like I told you last night, I'm here to listen if you ever want to vent." She turned her head away from him as tears started to form in her eyes. She blinked and looked up to prevent them from falling, but a single tear streamed down her face anyway. Locke leaned in and kissed the tear away, causing Rachel to wrap her arms around him.

"Oh, Locke," she exhaled as she looked up at him. "Sometimes I just don't understand what motivates some people to do the things they do. They lie, they hide things, and then they act as if nothing is wrong or different when, in fact, it hurts more people than they realize."

Locke froze as she spoke, realizing that lying was exactly what he was doing to her. Not to mention it was exactly what he wanted to clarify with her. "What, um, brought all of this up?"

"Sometime between last night and this morning, someone snuck into the vault in the basement, poisoned all the guards, and attempted to steal the Clemix Diamond, along with most of the riches down there." Locke sighed as he looked at the broken look on Rachel's face.

"Well, you said 'attempted' so I'm guessing that they didn't end up taking it off property?" Locke questioned as Rachel nodded. He forced himself into a smile to calm her down and try to cheer her up. "Well then, that's not too bad. You'll be okay."

"No, you just don't understand," she stated as she wiped away a few tears that were teasing to fall. Locke's smile faded as she shook her head. "Not only was that my only birthday present, but it possesses something. I'm not sure what it 'possesses' but my father is really shook up about it. The thieves were stopped before they were able to take it, but they managed to escape."

"But you still have the diamond," Locke said, trying to stay upbeat. Unfortunately, her mood didn't change, so he smiled again. "You're still here, too. At least you and your father weren't harmed."

"Indirectly we were," she began to explain with a shrug. "Now we know that we're a target for whoever tried to take the diamond. The officials suggested that it would be wise if my father and I sold the house and relocated ourselves to a discreet location."

"You mean, they want you to hide?" He asked as she nodded once again. "Well, if it assures your safety, then I have to agree with them. I don't want anything to happen to you."

The tears started to flow down her face as she buried her head in Locke's vest and sobbed. He placed his head on hers as he ran his fingers along her back, trying to console her the best he could. _Who tried to steal it? _He thought as he kissed her temple. _For the first time in my life I'm glad that I had an unsuccessful hunt…._

"So I guess that moving is the general idea of it," she continued, sniffing between every word. "We're not sure where or when yet, but we figure we have to lay low for a little while. The police basically told us that the thief might have used this as a personal attack on our family and might start with my father or I next."

"I agree and say that it's personal knowing that they tried to take your family's own personal diamond," Locke said as she broke free from his embrace and starting to pace her bedroom. He watched her go back and forth a few times then walked over to her and put his hand on her shoulder. "Are you going to be okay?"

"I don't know. I mean, I just can't believe this is happening," she replied and walked over to her bed to sit down on the satin comforter. She trailed her fingers along the material as she continued to speak. "Why would someone do this? I don't want to move. I…I've lived here my whole life."

Locke felt helpless as she fixed her gaze on him, waiting for him to say something consoling or comforting. Unfortunately, the only thing that he was thinking of was how heartbroken she was going to be when she found out the truth of who he really was. _I'm sure that's all she wants right now…_

"Locke?" He whipped his head over at her and she gestured him to sit down next to her. "Stay with me tonight. Please."

"Rachel," he started as he walked over and knelt down in front of her. Taking her hands in his, he watched the tears gently fall down her face and land on the front of her dress. "You don't even know me. Why are you trusting me this much?"

"Because I don't feel alone when I'm with you." Locke wasn't sure how to respond, so he stood up and placed her hands back on her lap. "What's wrong?"

"Rachel, you don't even know who I am," he said with a sigh and started to walk toward her window. He heard her stand up and walk a few steps closer to him, but he didn't turn around to look at her. "Yesterday night, you were telling me about your mother and your father, and I listened. I let you vent about everything that was bothering you and troubling you, and I only sat there and listened. I didn't even start to tell you about my childhood or what has happened to my parents. I know all about you, but you don't know anything about me."

"No, I don't, but to be honest, it doesn't even matter to me," she replied, stopping when she was several feet away from him. He let the thin fabric from the curtains run through his fingers and looked at the stars that were in the sky. "I don't know anything about you; your past, what your childhood was like, what you do for a living, or other details that made you who you are."

"You're not the tiniest bit curious?" He asked as she shook her head. A chuckle escaped his lips and she shot him an offensive look.

"What's so funny?'

"You're a girl, you're supposed to be curious about this kind of stuff," he said, offending her even more.

"Okay, maybe I am slightly curious about you, but that's only natural," she admitted as she watched him lightly finger the fabric. "I want to know everything about you. Well, that is, if you'll tell me everything about yourself. If you want to keep secrets, that's fine with me because I respect your privacy. However, if you want to tell me, I'm not stopping you. Basically what I'm trying to say is that even though I don't know anything about you, I felt something when I first met you yesterday. Something that I've never felt before."

He looked at her out of the corner of his eye, intrigued by her statement. "What do you mean?"

"Security," she stated simply as she started to walk closer to where he was standing. "Not to mention that you were a lot like me."

"How so?" He asked her as she softly smiled.

"There were thousands of people there last night, and you decided to get away from it all and look at the beauty of the decorations." Locke scoffed at her explanation.

"I didn't want to deal with anyone, that's all." His tone was defensive as he spoke, but he didn't want to give in. _I was away from everyone else so I could think of a plan to steal the diamond…_He thought as he gently shook his head. "Staying by the decorations was a way that I could stay out of sight."

"Just like me," she continued, her heels gently clicking against the floor as she advanced toward Locke. "I knew that party was for me, and I wanted to be anywhere but there. I saw you and I could tell that you were thinking the same thing. You were there for duty, not fun."

"You have no idea how correct that statement is," he said with an ironic chuckle.

Ignoring the sarcasm in his voice, her smile grew wider. "I just knew that we had some things in common, so I had to go up to you."

"You didn't even know me." He concentrated back on the material in his hand again, trying to keep his eyes off of her. Although her complexion was paler than usual from the current events happening in her life, she was still stunningly beautiful. "For all you knew, I could've been a murderer. I could be one of those guys who goes around and preys on innocent young girls for the hell of it. You could've been next on my list."

"I have an excellent judge of character and I knew that you weren't a murderer. I'll admit, your looks drew me to you first, but then you looked into my eyes…" She trailed off and gently put her hand on his arm to try to get him to look at her. He exhaled and looked in the opposite direction, pretending to be distracted by the wind blowing through the trees outside the window. "I feel safe around you. Like you'd never do anything to hurt me."

Guilt struck Locke's heart as he let the curtain drop back down, the lacy bottom barely touching the wooden floor. He still didn't look at her; he crossed his arms and faced the window. "I'd never try to hurt you, but I can't make promises. I only break the promises that I've made."

"But you promised me that you would take me out on a hunt with you to get me away from this life that I'm living," she argued playfully as she took another step toward him. "Was that just…a lie?"

"Well, no, but, Rachel, come on." He whipped around as he spoke and saw the coy smile fall off of her face. "Like I said, you don't know who I am."

"Set it straight for me then! Tell me the truth, Locke." She walked up to him and gently brushed his hair out of his face. He pursed his lips as she touched him, and didn't respond when she planted a kiss on them. "If that's even your real name."

"My name is Locke Cole," he began as he looked away from her and put his hands on the windowsill. "I'm not a nobleman, I'm not a member of a royal court, I'm just me. Kain Atherton doesn't even exist; I made up the name as an alias."

"So lied you about your name, so what?" She stated as her smile crept across her lips again. "That's not that big of a deal. You did say you wanted the 'man of mystery' image, so that just adds onto that. You're forgiven."

She propped herself up on her toes and leaned in closer to kiss him, but he turned his head to the side so she couldn't make contact with his lips. "If I said that was the biggest secret about myself I would be lying."

"Oh?" She questioned as she raised an eyebrow at him. The grim look on his face made her more concerned and she went flat on her feet again. "Go on."

_Just tell her, Locke. That's what you came here to do…_He thought as he bit at his lower lip in nervousness. With a sigh, he continued. "You said you didn't know what I did for a living, so here's the truth; I'm part of a treasure hunting corporation called Quantz. I'm sure you've heard rumors about them but now I'm telling you that all the rumors are true. My partner Xane and I were at the party last night to take the diamond."

No sound came from her mouth as her jaw dropped and her hand slowly rose to her chest in shock. Locke shook his head in disbelief that he just blurted out the truth to her, but he knew it would've eaten him alive if he didn't let her know. With a quick exhale, she backed up until the back of her legs hit her bed, and she sat down so she wouldn't pass out. "All those guards…"

"No no, Rachel, listen to me," he said quickly as he rushed over to her. "Xane and I didn't get close to the diamond or kill all those guards. We left, remember? We left so we wouldn't have gotten caught, and the more I think about it, the happier I am that we did leave. If I'm not mistaken, the diamond was still in the case when the party was over, correct?"

She lowered her hand to her lap and slowly nodded. "Yes, it was. So you're telling the truth?"

"Yes, this is the honest to goddesses truth and I feel terrible that I lied to you in the first place. That's why I told you my real first name last night because I felt guilty that I was lying. I promise never to lie to you again," he swore as he half attempted a smile.

"I thought you said that you couldn't keep promises." Her face remained inanimate, so his smile faded.

Instead of explaining himself, he shifted his weight on his feet and pointed toward the door. "Well, I just wanted to tell you the truth, and I did, so I guess my job is done here. I'm, um, going to go."

She didn't respond or protest, so he sighed and headed toward the door. "Wait, please," she cried out, making Locke's heart skip a beat. "I don't take back what I said."

"What was that?"

"The fact that I feel safe when I'm with you," she explained as she stood up and walked over to him.

"How?" He asked her, unable to find a logical reasoning to why she would still trust him. "I just told you that I was here to steal the diamond and you're still talking to me? How can you feel safe around me?"

"It's just a feeling," she admitted as she placed her hand on his cheek and ran her hand through his hair. "I look in your eyes and I know you actually see me."

"I see a beautiful girl dying for a life where she does more than walk through the motions," he said softly, bringing his own hand up and brushing her cheek. "And I feel terrible for lying to you."

She placed her finger on his lips and smiled at him. "Enough with that. It happened but you told me the truth to clear things up. I respect you for that." He attempted a smile and she rested her head on his chest. "Will you please stay with me tonight? I don't want to feel alone."

"Of course I will," he replied, smiling back at her. He tenderly ran his hand up and down her back then kissed her on the cheek.

"Oh, Locke," she exhaled as his trailed his kisses to her lips. He brought one of his hands up to the back of her neck and deepened the kiss, never wanting to stop.


	13. South Figaro

**WHOO HOO! YAY! This is from my favorite part of the game; Locke's Scenario. I had a lot of fun writing this chapter and the next, so I hope you enjoy them. I wrote them quite a long time ago, but not much has changed in them because I liked the way they turned out. I'm such a Locke freak, it's hilarious! Oh yeah, there is a lot of foreshadowing in this chapter that isn't resolved until chapter...um...33...So I hope you have a good memory! (There will be at least 40 chapters in this fic...which was actually my original goal! However, I have to write/finish 10 of them, but still...that means I have 30 done! squee!) There are a few things that won't make sense until you read those chapters, but whatever. They make sense to me because I know why Locke says what he does. You will get it eventually. Kay, enjoy!**

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**13. South Figaro**

Locke quickly ran around a house to hide from the soldier on duty on the eastern side of South Figaro. Luckily, the soldier didn't catch up with him in time and just looked around, Locke out of his area of view. He had worked hard to stymie the efforts of the Imperial troops, but now he desperately needed to escape. Within an hour, he was almost spotted by a dozen soldiers and he couldn't find a way out of the heavily guarded city.

"Nuts!" He exclaimed under his breath as he leaned against the wall of a house to catch his breath. "There's nothing I can do here besides get caught by soldiers and killed. Gotta get the Narshe on the fly…"

He saw some stairs ahead, causing him to smile and mutter, "The stairs that the girl talked about. Good, I need some potions anyway." He carefully and nonchalantly made his way north up the stairs and saw a building. Curious to what was inside, he knocked on the door and looked around as he waited for someone to open it. _Hmm…maybe I knocked too quietly…_He thought to himself as he bit his lip. He was just about to knock again when the handle turned and the door opened, revealing a small boy.

"You're not the merchant," he said simply as Locke narrowed his eyes.

"Uh, no," he replied in confusion. _What a way to greet people…_

"My grandfather won't talk to you unless you are the merchant who brings him his cider." The little boy blinked blankly at Locke, who remained confused. "So…bye."

The door was then slammed in Locke's face and he could hear the bolt lock. With a slight scoff in response to the boy's rudeness, he shook his head and continued walking to the Item Shop. The bell on the inside of the door rang to indicate that he walked in, and the sales clerk smiled in his direction.

"Good day, sir!" He said cheerfully as Locke walked up to the counter and leaned on it. "What can I help you with?"

"I just need ten potions," he responded as he reached into his pocket and pulled out some gold pieces.

"That'll be 3,000 gold pieces, please." Locke started to carefully count the gold as the clerk went under the counter and grabbed the potions. As he counted, he noticed with his peripheral vision that a merchant was staring him down on his left.

With a scoff, Locke turned toward the merchant and snapped, "What?"

"I just couldn't help but notice," he started with a chuckle as he continued to inspect Locke. "You're that thief, Locke, aren't you?"

"Hey!" Locke threw back as he slammed the correct amount of gold down on the counter, causing the clerk to jump in the air. "Call me a treasure hunter, or I'll rip your lungs out!"

"Ha!" The merchant snorted as he crossed his arms over his chest. "Try me!"

Locke quickly grabbed the potions, put them in his pack, then faced the merchant with an intimidating glare. The merchant slightly cowered, but weakly punched Locke in the shoulder. Annoyance fell on Locke's face as he pulled out his dagger.

He gasped with an idea and he put his dagger away. With a smile on his face, he ripped the plumed hat right off of the merchant's head, eliciting a rather feminine scream from his lips.

"What are you doing?" The merchant shrieked and put his hands on his now bare head.

"I just want to try it on because it's _so_ stylish." Locke put the hat on his head and kicked the merchant in the stomach, causing the man to run into the grandfather clock that was behind him. It was a miracle that the glass didn't shatter with the impact. The clerk gasped as the merchant fell to the ground, barely conscious. Locke ripped the man's merchant garb right off of his body as he slowly attempted to climb to his feet. "I can't have the hat without the rest of the outfit!"

"You bastard!" The merchant cried as he wrapped his arms around his nearly naked body.

"Here we go!" Locke shouted as he quickly threw on the merchant's clothes. He inhaled as he zipped up the pants, then exhaled when they were on. "They're a little tight, but the price was right."

"Ow," the merchant whimpered as he fell face first onto the ground. Locke knelt down next to him and lifted the merchant's head by his hair so he could look at him in the face.

"Now, what did we learn about calling people certain nicknames?" Locke chastised as the merchant continued to whimper.

"Sorry!" The merchant said quickly and Locke smiled. "I won't do it again!"

"Very good!" He clapped his hands together in mock excitement and caused several people in the item shop to stifle their laughter. Locke let go of the merchant, resulting in his forehead smacking into the floor. With a chuckle, Locke stood up and saw the horrified face on the clerk's face, so he gently waved at him. "Have a good day!"

Locke left the Item Shop and cheerfully made his way back to the house with the odd little boy. He knocked again, and the little boy opened the door. He raised an eyebrow at Locke, clearly recognizing him from before, and Locke smiled.

"Hi," he said cheerfully as the little boy remained in the doorway. Once again, he silently blinked at Locke. "Um…I said 'hi.'"

"Merchant, right?" Locke had to refrain from batting the boy over the head with a blunt object, so he politely smiled and nodded instead. "Okay. You may proceed."

"Thanks, buddy," he replied as the little boy gave him an annoyed look. After a beat of standing still, the little boy directed Locke to the back entrance of the house, which was down a floor. He opened the door for Locke without a word, so Locke patted the little boy on the head in appreciation.

Soldiers and Magitek armor were everywhere that Locke looked and he realized that there wasn't going to be a safe way through the city. He cocked his head to the side when he noticed that one of the soldiers was watching the waterwheel on the side of one of the buildings very closely. As he passed the soldier, he overheard him say, "Whoa…I'm getting dizzy…"

As he continued, he saw two soldiers were who away from their ranks chatting like two school girls. He didn't stop walking though; instead he slowly made his way toward the two soldiers.

"So, I heard there are two secret tunnels under the rich man's house. One leads out of town, the other to one of these houses…" One of the soldiers said as the other one fixed his helmet.

"Well, isn't that fascinating?" The second soldier drawled, his voice laced with sarcasm. "My news is better. I heard they grabbed a famous general who turned traitor!"

"No shit!" The first soldier exclaimed. _General found traitor…_Locke thought to himself as he listened to the two men gossip. _It can't be…_

Proudly, the second soldier nodded his head. "Yeah! She's locked up somewhere in this town."

'_She?' Okay, not who I thought. Who is it then? Oh well, at least I know that there is another way out of here now……_He thought as he continued to walk closer to them. He was only a few feet away from the men now, so they adverted their attention to him. "Hi!" He said cheerfully as the two soldiers sighed and rolled their eyes.

"We're not buying anything, so go away," the first soldier snapped as they separated and went back to their posts.

"Thanks!" Locke called after them as they completely ignored him. He let out a chuckle as he thought of his next plan. _Okay…how to get into the rich man's house now…I won't be able to get in wearing this…_

He walked to the northern part of town and climbed the stairs. It was relatively quiet at this part of town, so Locke felt slightly relieved. As he turned the corner, he saw a soldier in green armor. When the soldier spotted him, he couldn't have looked more irritated.

"Scram, you blockhead," he snapped.

"You don't want to buy anything from me?" He asked, putting his hands on his chest to feign shock. The soldier groaned as he continued to pace at his post. "Well, you don't have to be so impolite."

"I'm quite busy right now, if you couldn't tell," he shot back as Locke laughed.

"Oh yeah, I think you're going to wear a path in the floor if you keep 'working hard,'" he replied as the soldier glared at him. "Hey, ya know, I like your armor. I wonder if it'll fit me."

"What the hell is wrong with merchants nowadays?" The soldier asked himself under his breath. "Can't they just ask if I want to buy anything and then leave?"

"Well, I'm not your average merchant," Locke informed the soldier as he took a few steps toward him.

"Oh, yeah? And what makes you so different from the million others that roam the city streets?" The soldier demanded with a scowl.

Locke grabbed the soldier by the collar, smiled right at him, and said, "I'm different because, heh, I'm not one." In response to the soldier's queer glare, Locke kicked him in the stomach, knocking him out. A look of disappointment washed over his face as he looked at the soldier on the floor. "Aww, that wasn't any fun. I guess they let anyone into the Imperial army nowadays."

With a sigh, Locke dragged him behind some barrels that were to his left and quickly took the armor off of the unconscious soldier. He realized that the entire situation was all too familiar as he held the helmet in his hand. _Stealing clothing to sneak in unnoticed…it's like riding a damn bicycle…_

"Here we go!" He said to himself, took off the merchant attire and changed into the soldier's shiny armor. "These are a little too big, but they'll do." He grimaced at the stench and stuck out his tongue in disgust. "Sweet goddesses! Don't soldiers believe in showering every once and a while?"

Ignoring the smell as much as he could, he threw the merchant clothing off the back of the balcony and walked back down the steps to figure out his next move. He wasn't sure what he was doing, so he was making up his plan as he walked along the streets. _This must be the rich man's house…_He thought as he noticed a very large house at the northern part of town. As he tried to find a way inside, he passed a soldier who let out a loud sigh of relief.

"Good day, commander!" He greeted Locke with a salute. Locke walked over to him and figured if he could get him out of the way, he'd be able to continue through the town.

"Hi," he said back as he nodded. "Ya know, I've been noticing how hard you've been working hard all day and I must say, I'm damn proud. Since I'm such a great guy, I'll take over your shift for a while."

"You mean time's up?" Locke nodded again and the soldier dropped his poise. "Oh, good! I'll take a break! I hear there are some hot girls dancing at the café." He gently elbowed Locke and winked.

"Go get 'em, tiger," Locke said facetiously as the soldier giddily walked toward the café. He couldn't help but laugh and put his hand to his forehead. "These soldiers are pathetic."

For lack of better places to go, he followed the soldier into the café to hopefully gather more information. _It's worked before…_he thought as he looked around. There were several dancers on the stage and the soldiers were watching them as if they had never seen a woman before. Many of them were whistling and holding up gold pieces for the girls in one hand and a large mug of beer in the other.

One soldier placed his mug on the table and as he passed Locke, he muttered, "Never a dull moment. Time to guard the passage under the big mansion." He let out a large sigh as he continued with, "Oh well. Life is tough…"

_Well, that's two soldiers who have confirmed a secret passageway in the mansion…_He thought as he continued to make his way through the café. He noticed that there was a stairway, so he walked down the stairs as carefully as he could. The armor that he was wearing restricted his movement, so he held onto the railing to make sure that he wouldn't fall down the stairs.

There was a door in the basement, so he barged right in without knocking. Inside there was another merchant who leaped in the air at the sight of Locke.

"Hey, you!" The merchant cried as Locke clumsily saluted.

"Howdy," he said with a nod as he took a few more steps in the tiny room and looked around. "Hmm, this is a nice place you have here. I mean, it's a little bare, but if you add some curtains, a little color, maybe a few pictures, it'll be perfect."

The merchant slowly backed up and nervously said, "W-What do you want with me? Come to steal my cider?"

Locke looked at the table that the merchant was standing next to and saw a bottle of cider. He felt his brain start to work, so he put his hand to his face and began rubbing his chin. _Hmmm…_ "Ya know, now that you mention it, I am kinda thirsty."

"You thief!" The merchant cried as he pointed a finger at Locke.

"Tsk tsk tsk," Locke started as he took off the soldier helmet and held it against his hip. "Such accusations! Ya know, this has just been bothering me ever since I was younger, so since you brought it up, I just have to ask. What is with everyone using that negative connotation? I mean, there are different words that can be used. Ya know, like, 'treasure hunter.' That's just so much better."

Locke could tell that he threw the merchant off guard with his gift of rambling, so he stopped talking and with one swift movement, he hooked his left arm and had contact with the merchant's temple. He watched as the merchant crumpled unconscious to the floor in a heap of robes and limbs.

"Oh, come on! I'm not even left handed!" Locke said to the body, quite disappointed. He sighed when he realized that he knocked the merchant out cold. With a shrug, he threw the helmet on the bed in the corner then rubbed his hands together. "Oh well, here we go!"

As carefully as he could, he took off the soldier armor and changed into the merchant's outfit, again having to inhale as he put it on.

"Are all merchants freakin' anorexic or something?" He cried as he jumped up and down to get the pants on. "There! Okay, now let's take the cider back to…Oh no. I have to see that annoying kid again, don't I? Tch. Oh well."

He walked over the 'pile of merchant' and grabbed the bottle that was on the table. Walking over the merchant again, he quickly made his way up the stairs and through the town to get back to the old man's house. The path was clear because that soldier was on his break, and he was the only obstacle that Locke had to face in the first place.

Sighing, he knocked on the back door again, dreading the sight of the little boy. Of course, the little boy opened the door, but this time his face was a little more animated when he saw Locke; instead of the deadpan look that he gave him the first two times, he clearly gave Locke an aggravated look.

"You again?" The little boy asked as Locke nodded.

"I have the cider this time," he clarified as he showed the bottle to the little boy. "That's your cue to move, munchkin."

Insulted, the boy moved and Locke made his way through the house until he found the old man. The old man was sitting at his desk, peacefully reading a book. Locke couldn't help but feel sorry for him for having such a peculiar grandchild, but shrugged it off and walked up to him.

"Here you are, sir!" He exclaimed cheerfully as he handed him the green bottle of cider.

"Ah! Cider!" Like a little kid in a candy store, the old man drank the cider with deep glugs. As he was drinking, Locke looked at the bookshelf that was next to him. He let out a satisfied exhale as he gazed at the bottle. "Ahh, nothing like cider."

"So rumor has it that there's a passage somewhere around here," Locke started without looking away from the books. "Do you have any idea where I can find it?"

"Huh? Secret passage?" The old man put the bottle down and rubbed his chin with his fingers. "Well, there is one that leads to the rich man's house. Is that what you mean?"

"Yeah," Locke said, pleasantly surprised at how easily the old man was spilling information. "How can I get to it?"

"Oh, it goes from this house to the rich man's house. I used to work for the rich man, you know," he stated as Locke turned toward him. "Go downstairs and give my grandson the password."

"What's the password?" Locke asked as he put his hands on the desk and leaned forward.

"It's…uh…" His eyes wondered off in thought as he looked up at the ceiling, at the desk, then back at Locke. "Umm…I forget!"

"Okay, thanks anyway," Locke replied as his heart slightly fell. _Great, more time with the grandson…_He thought as he hopped down the stairs, only to see the little boy waiting at the foot of them. Locke stood on the last step and looked at the little boy in hopes that he would move. "So, uh, your grandfather says that there is a secret passage way somewhere around—"

"The password is…?" He drawled with a dry tone of voice.

"You know, he didn't tell me," Locke said as he put his hands on the railing and leaned over so he was above the little boy's head. The little boy had to look up at Locke at such a steep angle that Locke thought he was going to topple backward. "How 'bout making this a multiple choice test? I do better on those. I don't have to improvise as much."

The annoying little boy sighed and reluctantly said, "Okay, fine. The password is either courage or…uh…." he trailed off as he tried to think of two more things to say, clearly proving to Locke what the answer was. "Or rosebud or—"

"I'm gonna go out on a limb here and say, 'courage,'" he interrupted, causing the little boy to blink.

"Secret entrance," he said as he moved out of the way and walked to the wall opposite of the back door. He pushed on a brick, causing it to pop open, revealing a small red button. Letting out a slight grunt, he pushed it, causing part of the brick wall to open, revealing a secret staircase.

"Huh," Locke said in wonder as he walked toward the staircase. He stopped and ruffled the little boy's hair first and said, "Thanks a bunch, kiddo!"

The little boy put his hands on his head to fix his hair and Locke chuckled as he made his way down the stairs toward the rich man's house.


	14. A Familiar Face

**This is one of my favorite chapters in the story. (I think I said that in the beginning of the last chapter, but yeah, I'm being repetitive, whatever) I loved this part in the game, so yay. I'm glad this chapter turned out the way that I wanted it to, and to be honest, I hardly had to do any editing on it. (That's a very rare occurrence!) Okay, bye!**

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**14. A Familiar Face**

Locke quickly walked through the secret passage under South Figaro and walked up the stairs to another door. He put his hand on the handle and twisted, finding himself in a rather small room. _This must've been the servants area…_He concluded as he looked around. There didn't seem to be any guards around, so he walked onto the wooden floor and shut the door.

As nonchalantly as he could, he made his way around the house, pretending to sell things since he was still in his merchant costume. There were so many soldiers throughout the house that Locke was amazed. South Figaro was now in complete control of the Empire and it only took less than 24 hours. _How long is it going to be before Gestahl has the entire world in the palm of his hand?_

"The Imperial Troops have turned this house into their headquarters." Locke slightly jumped when he heard a female voice in his direction, and saw that it was one of the servants talking him.

"I'm sorry?" He asked as she sighed.

"I can tell by the way that you're looking around that you're in shock. In all honesty, we feel the same way. It just happened so quickly," she continued as she gestured around the room. Her tone was heavy with disbelief as she spoke. "Look at them all, acting as if they own the place."

"They pretty much do," Locke replied sadly, emitting another sigh from her lips. He put his hand on her arm and smiled at her to boost her confidence. "Don't worry, I'm sure everything will work out. I gotta get back to my rounds though, I have a lot of things to sell!"

"Good luck," she said to him as he waved and walked out of the room.

He walked into a small room, which looked like the nursery. There was a soldier who must've been given orders to watch the two children in there, and it looked as though he was about to jump out the nearest window. The look of desperation in his eyes made Locke chuckle.

"Do you have anything that will kill these two kids?" He asked frantically as Locke blinked blankly. He grabbed Locke by the shoulders, causing him to lean back slightly. "Okay, maybe killing is too strong. Maim! I can settle for maim! Anything!"

The little boy walked up to the soldier, tugged on his arm, and said, "Chung chung….Chung chung…Magitek Armor! Hey, mister, can I ride in your Magitek Armor thing? I'll be really, _really _careful! I promise! Pretty, pretty, pretty please?"

The soldier looked at Locke with a look that said, 'see what I mean?' then slightly pushed the little boy to the side. The little girl was hopping around the room and stopped when she noticed Locke. She ran up to him and sang, "Wind the clock! Wind the clock!"

"Huh?" Locke asked as she jumped around him in a big circle. Watching her was making him dizzy, so he put his hand on her head to stop her.

"Uh, that was just a jump rope rhyme," she exclaimed quickly as she ran back to the other side of the room to hop around some more. The little boy ran over to his sister and started to imitate her jumping.

"Rascals! Knock it off!" The soldier cried out as he saw the objects on the walls start to shake. About half a second later, a picture frame fell off the wall and broke into a thousand pieces, causing both of the children to stop what they were doing to start crying and screaming. With a groan, the soldier looked up at the ceiling then screamed, "I never want kids!"

"Okay, this is my cue to leave," Locke whispered as he left the soldier in charge of the two children. He almost felt sorry for the soldier, but then only chuckled when he realized that it was a good start for punishment for a member of the Imperial Troops.

After walking around the house some more, he saw a door that was slightly ajar. Normally it wouldn't have caught Locke's attention, but he heard a loud crash coming from inside. He walked up to the door and tried to see what was inside without opening it more.

There was a man sitting at a table with his head in his hands and he was trying to write a letter. Locke wasn't sure what the crash was, but after scanning the room, he could see what used to be a beautiful vase on the floor; the man must've grabbed it and thrown it against the wall, causing it to shatter.

"Oh, what have I done?" He cried out as he shook his head and dipped his pen into the inkwell to continue writing the letter he had started. "I betrayed the town and I didn't even need the money!"

_It's him! _Locke gasped as he moved out of the door frame. _So I guess since Kefka didn't discover Terra at Figaro Castle, the Empire took over South Figaro. Edgar is going to love to hear what kind of citizens he has in his kingdom…_

With a sigh, he made his way into another room where several soldiers were standing around, and a young woman was sitting on the bed reading a book. The room was slightly cooler than the rest of the house, resulting in Locke breaking out into goosebumps. She looked up from her reading and threw her book down next to her when she saw him.

"Finally!" She exclaimed as she walked over to him. "I thought you'd never get here!"

Locke looked around, confused that she was talking to him then pointed to himself. "Uh, me?"

"Yes, you!" She said happily as she looked at the clock that hung on the wall. She slightly frowned when she looked at him again and placed her hands on her hips. "However, I thought that you would've been here quite a long time ago."

"I'm sorry?" He said as he rose his shoulders, not sure what he was even apologizing for.

"The draft is coming from over there." She pointed to her left and Locke followed her fingers with her eyes. "I'm not sure what's causing it, but it's making this room miserable. Please fix it as soon as you can!"

"B-But, I'm not a repairman," he tried to explain as she clapped her hands toward the soldiers.

"Come on, boys," she shouted as they all turned her way. "Let's give the man some space to work." With a few grumbles and complaints from the soldiers, they all started to leave the room. The young woman turned toward Locke again and said, "Thanks so much. I'll be downstairs if you need me, okay? Just let us know when it's fixed!"

She left, leaving Locke dumbfounded. "She didn't hear a damn word I just said," he mumbled as he shrugged and walked toward the back wall. There was a bookshelf in the way, but he could tell that the source of the draft was coming from behind it. Straining slightly, he pushed the bookshelf and noticed that there was a door. _The other secret entrance! Finally I get the hell out of here! _

After pushing the bookshelf completely out of the way, he opened the door and walked down the steps. He figured he didn't need to look like a merchant anymore, so he stripped back down to his normal clothes. "Wow, I feel human again," he said as he rubbed his arms with his hands.

He continued to walk through the secret passageway, but stopped when he heard some commotion through a door. Standing on his tip toes, he looked through the bars in the door to see what was going on.

There were two guards in the room and a young woman was chained to the wall. She had blonde hair that was now tousled, and the frightened look in her eyes said a thousand words. Locke went back down on his feet and turned away from the door in thought.

"I've seen her before…" As quickly as his mind would work, he tried the think of how he knew her. Her appearance was striking enough that he was able to remember who she was quickly. "Of course! She's one of the Empire's generals!" He went back on his toes to listen to their conversation.

One of the soldiers, the taller one, repeatedly struck at her as the other soldier watched and laughed. "This's what happens to traitors!" He said as the young woman let out a cry in pain.

"So the mighty Celes has fallen!" The other guard taunted with a laugh, causing Locke to gasp.

"Celes!" He cried under his breath as the name rang a bell in his head. He shook his head as he exhaled. "Oh shit…" He didn't realize that he had spoken out loud until the guards started to look his way. Luckily, he turned away just in time.

"Did you hear something?" The first guard said as the other guard mumbled something that was inaudible. "You didn't? Huh. I guess I'm hearing things."

"Maybe it was your conscience," the girl said weakly, giving the soldiers another reason to beat her.

"Did I ask you to talk? No!" The shorter guard said as he struck her in the stomach with all of his might. She whimpered, causing him to laugh at her. "I never thought I'd see the day when General Celes would be chained up to a wall!"

"Well, I don't know about that one," the taller soldier jeered as he nudged the other soldier in the shoulder. "From what I've heard from Leo, I wouldn't be surprised if—"

She bowed her head in embarrassment and interrupted, "How can you serve those cowards…"

"Hold your tongue!" The shorter soldier spat. "Your flapping tongue is the thing that got you into this mess in the first place! You would think you would've learned your lesson."

"Isn't it true Kefka's going to poison the people of Doma to the east?" She asked, her voice weak and wavering. The other soldiers' response was only to laugh, Celes' eyes opening wider. "So it _is_ true. How can you sit back and do nothing?"

"Shuddap!" The shorter soldier snapped as he delivered a strong blow to her ribs, knocking the wind out of her and causing her to collapse. Both soldiers burst out into laughter again and the shorter soldier said, "I'd hate to be in your shoes tomorrow!"

The soldier started to walk out of the room, and Locke panicked. _Uh oh! _He looked up above him and saw a support beam that was in jumping distance. As quickly as he could, he jumped and grabbed on. He swung himself around so he could climb on top of it and remain unseen.

Holding on was a difficult task, and he was becoming impatient when the soldier didn't exit the room right away. He could hear them talking, but their voices were too deep for him to make anything out. All he heard was, "I can go for days without sleep!"

The shorter soldier exited the room and once he was out of sight, Locke carefully jumped down from the ceiling. He brushed the dirt and dust off of his clothes and looked inside the room. The other soldier was already fast asleep. "Days without sleep, my ass," Locke muttered as he shook his head and walked over to Celes.

He searched his pockets for his collection of lock picks, and when he found them, he quickly removed Celes' chains. She fell to the floor with a gasp and Locke slowly helped her get to her knees.

"I thought you were unconscious," he started as she put one of her hands around her other wrist and rubbed the spot where the chains were.

"I'm a good actress," she said with a weak smile. "But then again, I've worked for the Empire for so long that lying and acting just became a way of life."

"Well, you had me fooled, so high marks." He helped her to her feet and she stood on wobbly legs.

"And you are…" He started to walk away out of the room, but with the sound of her voice he looked back over his shoulder. "You look very familiar."

"I get that a lot. I just have one of those familiar faces, I guess," he stated with a smirk. "However, I'm with the Returners." She studied him, but he knew that she couldn't remember where she had seen him before, and he wasn't about to bring up the situation with her yet. "Name's Locke."

"Returners!" She exclaimed as he turned around to face her. "Wow, I've heard rumors about the Returners, but I wasn't sure if they were real or not…"

"Of course the Returners are real," he replied as he walked up to her. "There are a lot more of us than you would think, too. That's the funny thing about all of this. More people hate the Empire than like them. A lot of people just pretend that they're all for the Empire so they don't get sentenced to a painful death."

"I understand that now." She looked down at her feet and twirled a tendril of hair around her finger. "I used to be General Celes…Now I'm just a common traitor…"

There was silence between the two of them for a moment, so Locke started to walk toward the door. "Okay, let's go!"

"What? You'd take me along?" She exclaimed as she whipped her head up at him. After a second, she shook her head. "Thanks, but, uh, no thanks."

"Why not?"

"For one thing, I can barely walk…" To prove her point, she took a few wobbly steps in his direction. She didn't fall like Locke thought she would, but she still stopped in her tracks and shook her head again. "I'm grateful, but…Even if you got me out of here, you'd never be able to protect me."

Again, Locke asked, "Why not?"

"If I escape now, the entire Imperial army will be out looking for me," she bowed her head and looked off to the side. "This kind of thing happened several years ago with a different general. He was…an incredible fighter, amazing with battle logic and strategy…he was a vital asset to the Empire. When he turned traitor, it took us years to hunt him down."

_I know…_Locke thought, his turn to bow his head again. "What, um, what happened to the man?"

"I'm not sure," she answered honestly with a slight chuckle. Before he was able to ask her more about it, she began to speak. "Anyway, you're very kind and I appreciate the offer, but I'm going to have to decline. I think I'm better off here."

"I'll protect you!" He blurted without thinking. She turned toward him and blinked a few times in surprise. "Trust me! You'll be fine!" With a wink, he gestured toward the door again. "Come on, let's go!"

He started to take the initiative to leave, hoping that she would follow him, but she stopped him. "Wait."

"What is it?" He looked over his shoulder as she walked up to the sleeping soldier.

"This soldier has something important on him…" she replied as she reached into the soldier's pocket and grabbed something that was small and shiny. Holding it up, she explained, "It's a key of some kind. It's not a key used for a door though, it's not the right shape. So, I'm not sure what it's to, but I overheard the two soldiers discussing it."

"Well, it definitely doesn't hurt to take it with us," he said with a shrug. "Now, let's get gone."

"Right." She walked through the door with Locke close behind her and they started to walk through the secret passage.

"Do you know your way around here?" He asked as she shook her head. "Damn. I guess we'll just have to blindly walk through here and hope we don't run into any soldiers. Oooh. This is going to sound like an odd question, but—"

"I'm armed," she replied as she patted the sword that was attached to her hip. "The soldiers weren't intelligent enough to unarm me before they tied me up."

"Ya know, it's funny; the more I see of the Imperial Troops, the more I'm surprised at how stupid the whole lot of them are." Locke opened another door for Celes and they entered a room that looked like it might have been a storage room at one point. Old boxes and crates were stacked up along the walls with other random objects that were forgotten throughout the years.

"They're not all that bad," she said, slightly defensive. Locke decided not to challenge her with the truth, so he walked around the corner and slightly groaned. "What is it?"

She walked over to him to see what the problem was. "There's no way out," he pointed out as he pushed against the brick wall. "It's solid. Damn it. I guess this means we'll just have to find another way. Maybe we took a wrong turn or something."

"What's this?" Locke craned his head around the wall to see what it was she was investigating.

"It's an old clock. It's not ticking…" he said, stating the obvious. He ran his finger on the top of the wood and thousands of dust bunnies came fluttering down, making both he and Celes cough. "By the looks of the seven inches of dust on the top, I'm guessing that it hasn't worked in quite a long time. I'm starting to wonder if the guy that owns this place even remembers that this stuff is down here."

Celes reached into her pocket and pulled out the key that she grabbed from the soldier. "Wind the clock?"

"Hmm, it looks like it'll fit," Locke stated as she handed him the key. He looked at the key and the hole in the face of the clock, then looked back up at Celes. "However, no one is even down here to hear it tick, so what's the point?"

"I just have a hunch."

"A hunch?" He asked her as she nodded. "Heh, you sound like me."

"So, wind it already," she said, impatient that he was simply staring at the key in his hand. _Wait a second here…_He thought as he felt his brain work. When the right thought popped into his head, he gasped. "What is it?"

"Wind the clock!"

"Yeah, I know, that's what I just said," she stated with a laugh as she saw the look of shock on his face.

"No, the little girl in the house told me to wind the clock, then when I asked her about it, she told me it was only a jump rope rhyme," He muttered as he further inspected the key. "I wonder if she really knew…"

Celes shrugged at him as he put the key in the hole and twisted. There was a loud noise and they exchanged a nervous glance. Locke made his way around the corner first and when it was safe, he waved her over to him.

"Hey, check that out, it's a door!"

"Yep, look at that," he replied as he opened the door for her and let her go in first. They climbed the staircase and when they reached the landing, Celes stopped again. "What is it?"

"Locke, why are you helping me?"

"You remind me of someone…" He trailed off and looked at his feet. _Her smile…her voice…it's like she's her in another body…_With a sharp inhale, he shook away his thoughts and moved his glance back up at Celes. "But what's it matter, anyway? I just want to, okay?"

"O…kay…" Celes said slowly, shocked at his tone. Locke prayed that she wouldn't ask him more details, and thankfully she didn't.

"We're home free now. We just need to get to Narshe," he informed her as they left South Figaro.

With a gasp, she stopped dead in her tracks. Her voice was frantic as she asked, "Narshe? Why Narshe? What's in Narshe?"

"The rest of the Returners," he explained calmly as he watched the color drain from her face. "What is it, Celes?"

"We have to get there," she said as she broke out into a run in that direction. "Now!"

"What? Why?" He asked as he picked up his speed to catch up with her. She didn't answer him right away, so he felt his heart skip a beat. "Celes! What's going on?"

"We have to warn everyone in that city that the Empire is headed in that direction as we speak!"

"What?" Locke cried out as he caught up to her. "How do you know?"

"Kefka's after that frozen Esper! He'll kill anyone that will stand in his way!" Locke grabbed Celes by the arm to stop her so he could look at her in the eyes. "What are you doing?"

"Are you telling me everything?" He snapped as they stopped and he glared at her in the eyes. "Why did they claim you were a traitor?"

"Don't you trust me?" She asked as he studied her. "Locke, please, there's no time for this!"

"Just tell me, Celes!" He demanded as she looked up to the sky and sighed.

"I…was snooping around our headquarters when we were set up in Jidoor and accidentally overheard Kefka talking about poisoning the kingdom of Doma. When I confronted him about it, he twisted my words around," she explained as she gritted her teeth. "He grabbed me and brought me to see the Emperor and told him that he overheard me talking about an assassination so I would be in charge of the Imperial army. It was a lie, Locke! Kefka is plotting a massacre! Thousands of people are going to die and I couldn't let it slide by!"

"Why did Gestahl believe Kefka over you?" Locke questioned as Celes shook her head.

Pain washed over her face as she looked Locke in the eyes and said quietly, "Kefka has filled his head with thoughts of power, but is only planning to use the power for himself, that's why. Kefka wants to rule the world and I won't let it happen as long as I'm living. Emperor Gestahl's not the same man that he was 10 years ago. Let me join the Returners, Locke. I'm begging you."

"Wow." That was the only word that would escape Locke's lips for he was surprised at how much information she spilled about the Empire. _Kefka…trying to take over the world…_ "Of course you can join the Returners. Just explain everything that you told me to Banon, our mentor. You just gave me a hell of a lot of insight from behind the closed walls of the Empire."

"Well, no time to dwell on it now," she said as she started to briskly walk toward Narshe. "We have to warn everyone before it's too late."

_Damn…_Locke thought as he jogged to catch up to her. _What is this world coming to…_


	15. A Birthday Surprise

**WHOO HOO! Finally FFN is letting me log in so I could post this! I kinda wanted to post this yesterday...but that's okay. Today is still technically my birthday (in some time zones! lol! It's like 1am on June 4th here...My 20th bday was June 3rd...EEKS I'm old), so that's why I wanted to wait until now. Well, actually, I just finished this chapter yesterday, but I actually like the way it turned out. Yes...November 24 is Locke's bday...so I wanted to post it on MY birthday:giggle: Anyway, there is quite a large time difference in this chapter than the last Locke and Rachel-y chapter...but that's okay. Not much happened, so it's all good! I have to still write the second part of this...part...But that'll be chapter 16. :) It's so funny because a lot of the information that happens in this chapter won't be explained (again) until the MUCH MUCH later chapters. I'm talking chapters 36 and 37...depending on how many more chapters I add. Oh well. Okay, I'm shutting up so I can go to bed...I have to be at work at 9! Night night!**

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**15. A Birthday Surprise**

On a cool November morning, Locke woke up to the sound of the birds flying around Rachel's window and opened his eyes. The sun was shining directly on him and he had to squint from the extreme bright light before he could focus on anything. He almost forgot where he was, but when he felt the young girl in his arms shift in her sleep, his memory was refreshed.

He smiled, scooted closer, and kissed her on her bare shoulder, emitting a sigh from her lips as she began to wake up. With a small moan, she turned over so she was on her back and looked up at Locke, a pleased smile on her face.

"Good morning, beautiful," he whispered as he brushed her lips with his own. As soon as she started to be more conscious, she gasped and opened her eyes wide. "What is it?"

"Guess what today is!" She asked as she began to wiggle her toes under the covers. Locke yawned and scratched his head as he watched her excitement grow.

"Thursday?" He asked with a shrug, even though he knew what she was going after.

"I know it's a Thursday, silly!" She said, wrapping her arms around his chest and pulling him closer. "But what's the date!"

"Well, I do believe that yesterday was November 23rd, right?" He asked as he pretended to think about it.

"Uh huh," she replied cheerfully. Locke wasn't sure how she managed to get so excited and not explode, so he was amused just watching her. "So, if the 23rd was yesterday's date, what would today's date be?"

Smiling, Locke put one hand on his chin and tapped his lower lip with his index finger in thought. "Well, I guess that means I would have to add another number to 23, so that would be—"

"It's November 24th, Locke!" She interrupted quickly, moving his finger so she could kiss him. "Since I don't want to play the guessing game again, today is your twenty-fourth birthday!"

"Ugh, must you keep reminding me?" He groaned and threw himself back down on the bed. "You have had a countdown going on for, like, the past month and a half and it's just a constant reminder of how old I'm becoming."

She giggled and with a nod said, "Yep. Twenty-five is just around the corner and that's a quarter of a century!" After thinking about her statement, she added, "Wow, you _are _old."

"I know, I know," he agreed with a playful shove as he sat up in bed and reached for his clothes. "Oh well. For now I'm just going to convince myself that it's just a number. A rather large number, but there's nothing I can do about it. It's not like I can stop time or anything."

"I wish we could," she said as she sat up and put her arms around his chest. "I wish we could stop time and stay like this forever."

He smiled, reached over, and grabbed his watch that was resting on the table next to the bed. After looking at the time, he sighed and put it back around his wrist. "Unfortunately we can't. Sorry to say I have to get up and leave so your father doesn't come home and shoot my ass out of here."

"Aww, he wouldn't do something _that_ crazy," she said, receiving a look of disbelief from her boyfriend. "Locke, we've been dating for about nine months now. I don't think he hates you that much."

"I beg to differ," he argued as he handed her her shirt that was lying on the floor. "Here. You should put this on."

With a whimper, she took her shirt in her hands and watched him stand up and put on his boxers. "Do you have to leave? I mean, I highly doubt my father will come home until later in the evening. Who knows? He might just come home tomorrow!"

"I'm not willing to take that risk, Rachel," Locke confirmed, putting his hands on his hips. "I would like to live to see my twenty-fifth birthday, thank you very much, quarter of a century or not."

"Well, I still want to see you tonight," she protested as she put her shirt over her head, crawled out of bed, and placed her hands on Locke's bare chest. "I mean, you only turn twenty-four once, and I might have something planned."

He chuckled and kissed her on the forehead. "You 'might' have something planned? Uh oh."

"Okay, okay, I _do _have something planned," she admitted with an innocent smile. "That's why I know my father is going to be out until much later tonight. I asked him and he told me that it was going to be a late night so I was able to conjure up my plans. I have no idea what he's doing, but I really don't care. As long as he's not here tonight to ruin what I want to do, that's all that matters to me."

Locke furrowed his forehead with intrigued curiosity and put his arms gently around Rachel's waist. "And may I inquire to what it is that you're planning?"

"Of course not," she replied as she picked up her skirt and slipped it on. "If you asked, I would probably give away the surprise and what fun would that be?"

He playfully sighed and continued to get dressed as he spoke. "All right, I'll let you be and just let my curiosity eat away at me. You know I'm overly curious, so this is torture."

"No, the torturing is in store for tonight." Locke whipped his head up to see Rachel seductively sit down on the bed with a seductive smile on her face. He raised his eyebrows at her and bit at his lip.

"Again I have to say 'uh oh.'" He walked over to the bed and put his hands on either side of her legs so he could look her in the eyes. He matched her flirtatious look, kissed her, then backed away to speak. "So, do I have to wear anything special, or is it going to be one of those things where it won't matter because clothing won't say on long?"

She cocked her head to the side as she thought about it, then looked back at him. "Hmm. Well, that's beside the point, but for a short period of time I do want you to look nice. I can't tell you if we're going anywhere, but I just want you here at six o'clock. How's that?"

"Six? That's dinner time," Locke mentioned, trying to pry for more details. She caught onto his intentions, pushed him away and stood up. "And if you can't tell me that we're going anywhere, does that mean that we are or we aren't?"

"No more hints, Locke!" She exclaimed as she shook her finger at him in shame. "You know just how to get to me, and it's not fair! I have a hard enough time keeping secrets as it is!"

"Okay, I'll stop now," he replied with a laugh. He bent over to grab his bandana that was on the floor and slowly tied it around his head. "I'll be here tonight at six o'clock sharp, I promise."

"Not a minute later, Mr. Cole!" She bounced on her toes and threw herself into his arms. "If you promise to be here on time, I promise that I'll make it a night to remember."

"Rachel, all the nights that I spend with you are nights to remember," he said, smiling at the fact that she started to blush. "But, you have my word."

She walked him to the door and brought him into one final embrace. "Yay! I'm so excited! Now, you need to get out of here so I can get everything ready!"

"I love you too," he stated as he scrunched his nose at her.

"Aw, you know what I meant!" She clarified, opening the door and pointing to outside. "I'll be able to spend lots and lots of time with you later tonight, okay? But you can't forget!"

"I won't be able to forget something that deals with you," he said with a quick peck on her lips.

"I won't either," she replied softly with a smile, causing Locke to smile as well. "I'll see you at six. Dress nicely and be prepared for anything. Those are the only hints I can give you."

"Works for me." He grabbed his coat off of the coat rack and put it on once he felt the chilly morning air. "I love my birthday and all, but I just wish it was warmer!"

"Well, at least the sun is out." Locke smiled at her optimistic attitude and nodded. "Bye, Locke."

"Bye," he responded as he turned away from her and started to walk down the porch steps.

"Oh!" She exclaimed, causing Locke to quickly whip around. "Okay, I guess I do have to tell you something or else it might end up in disaster!"

"What's that?" He asked with a playful smile on his face.

"Part one involves us going to see the new opera that is premiering tonight at the Opera House!" She stated, running down the stairs of the porch so she could be closer to him. "I figured I better tell you so you knew exactly how to dress."

"The Opera House?" He tried not to make a face because that wasn't what he wanted to do on his birthday, but he knew how much Rachel loved the opera. Instead of frowning, he pasted on a fake smile and acted excited. "I mean, wow! I didn't know that there was a new opera! Thanks for telling me though. Now I know that I should wear a tux."

"Exactly!" She squealed and kissed him again on the cheek. "I bought a new dress and everything! You'd be surprised what I had to go through to get us tickets!"

"As long as it doesn't involve prostitution, I'm happy that you went through the extra effort." Rachel giggled and shook her head at his statement. "Okay then, I'll see you tonight."

With a gentle squeeze, she kissed him and ran back up to her house. "Bye again!"

"Bye," he replied with a wave as she shut the door.

0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0

"Where the hell have you been?" Xane asked when Locke warped into the Quantz hideout. Locke froze, thinking that he was in trouble, but by the excited look on Xane's face, he could tell that he was in the clear. "There has been some massive shit going on here and you haven't been here to witness it."

"Take a wild guess to where I was," Locke replied with a smile as he put the warp stone in his pocket. Xane didn't answer, but instead nodded in understanding. "So, inform me of what has been going on since I've obviously missed something."

"About ten minutes ago, Vaughn told me about this big hunt that he wants you and I to go on," Xane said with a smile. Locke stopped in his tracks, looked up at the ceiling and shook his head. "What?"

"Please don't tell me that he wants us to go on this hunt as soon as we can," Locke muttered with a sigh.

Xane chuckled and stated, "Well, you know Vaughn. He's not a very patient man, but he wants us to wait until the big show that is going on tonight. He literally said, 'the second Cole comes back, I want you two to make plans then head toward the Opera House at around six.'"

Locke groaned at Xane's statement then rubbed his face with his hands. "You have got to be kidding me. Why the Opera House? Why at six?"

"Think about it," Xane began as he walked in front of Locke. "The Opera House is where all kinds of rich people go and show off their wealth. It's a game of who has the most expensive jewelry and clothing, you should know that. And why at six? Because the show starts at seven."

"Yeah, I do know that, but what's so important about going tonight?" Locke bit at his lip and tried to think of a way to get out of it. "Can't we make it another night? The opera plays four days a week. _Any _night but tonight would be fine with me."

"What's wrong with doing this tonight?" Xane asked as Locke gave him a pleading look. His smile grew as he read the expression on Locke's face. "Oh, that's right! Today is your birthday! Happy birthday! I can't believe I forgot. Thirty is just around the corner!"

"Ugh," Locke said with a shudder. "Thanks, but I'll hit twenty-five first. Besides, you'll be the one hitting thirty before I will."

Xane laughed and ran his fingers through his hair. "Yeah, true. I'll shut up about it. So, I take it that you have something big planned for you and Rachel?"

"I'm not exactly sure what's going to happen, but Rachel has it all planned out," Locke stated, innocently blinking his eyes as he explained. "I know that she put a lot of hard work into planning this all out, and I don't want to disappoint her by telling her 'no.' She'd pout and then explain how I 'only turn twenty-four once.'"

"Yeah, true, but you also don't get very many chances at the jewels that the main star of tonight's opera is wearing," Xane added with a smirk and a raise of one of his eyebrows. "She's wearing the Queen of Doma's own jewels only for tonight at the premiere, and unless you really want to travel by boat all the way to Doma castle, you won't get another chance at this one."

"Jewels again? You've gotta be kidding me!" Locke groaned again as he studied Xane. "Come on, look at what happened the last time we went after a damn jewel; we left empty handed."

"You honestly want to go into Vaughn's office and tell him that you're not going to do it because you have a romantic night planned with your girlfriend, who, may I add, is the daughter of the richest man in the World of Balance? Not to mention that you are aware of that fact and Vaughn curses at you behind your back every time you go over there because you return without the diamond," Xane said very matter of fact as he crossed his arms over his chest. Locke gave him a look of surprise and Xane only shrugged. "I'm telling the truth. Vaughn couldn't care less if you were dating VanLente's daughter, but it's that you haven't tried once to get the diamond. I'm not going to intrude and ask where, but I'm assuming that you do know where it's located, do you not?"

"Yes, I do," Locke replied as he thought about it. When the VanLente's moved from Jidoor to the small house in Kohlingen, they removed one of the shelves in the bookcase so they would be able to put a chest with the diamond back there to hide it. When the diamond was safe, the Baron rebuilt the bookshelf so it looked as if nothing was hidden there. Rachel, Baron, and Locke were the only three who knew that it was there, and Locke only knew because Rachel trusted him and told him. "I could easily snag it if I wanted to betray Rachel's trust and have her father murder me, but I don't want to see that happening anytime in the future. Sorry to burst your bubble."

"You're bursting Vaughn's, not mine. I honestly couldn't care less as long as it stays there," Xane stated with a shrug of his shoulders. Locke narrowed his eyes at his statement, so he sighed and changed the subject. "Anyway, tonight we're going to the Opera House. The show starts at seven and we don't want to miss the overture!"

With another smile, Xane turned on his heel and started to walk toward his room but Locke grabbed him by the shoulder before he was able to go far. "Wait a minute! I'm serious, I can't do this tonight! Rachel already has tickets for the show and she wanted to drag me along!"

"Ha, some birthday present! You hate opera," Xane said with a laugh as Locke nodded his head. "However, when you think about it, it works out perfectly."

"I hate it when you say that," Locke mumbled with a grimace. "Now I'm afraid to ask, 'why does it work out perfectly?'"

"Well, if you told Rachel that you would go tonight, you can't back out on her. _But _you can get the jewel while you're there!" Locke scoffed at Xane, so he raised his shoulders. "What? It's a wonderful idea! You can say you have to get some fresh air or something, sneak into the dressing room, and then as you stealthily walk pass me in the crowd of people, you pass it to me. It will be flawless. That way you can go back to Kohlingen with Rachel and I'll come back here and give the jewel to Vaughn. You'll be happy, Rachel will be happy, and since Vaughn will be happy, I'll be happy! Everyone's a winner!"

Locke thought about it and watched Xane's smile grow with every second that passed by. _Well, he's right…It'll be like killing two chocobos with one stone…_

"You're thinking about it, so that's a good thing," Xane stated, pointing to Locke as he spoke. "Since you're batting it around, I'm going to finish your thought process by saying that you'll do it. Think about this; if you do it, maybe Vaughn won't bitch about the Clemix diamond anymore. How's that?"

Locke whipped his head up and gasped. "I'll do it," he replied instantly.

"Great! Our plan will go down after the show!" With a pat to Locke's shoulder, Xane turned around and walked down the hall.

"Nice, Locke," Locke mumbled to himself as he watched Xane turn the corner. "If Rachel finds out that you're doing this, she's going to murder you. Happy twenty-fourth birthday to me."


	16. Confessions

**Not sure how much I like this chapter, but I just spent almost three hours editing it...and there isn't anything else I'd like to add in it. Meh, I've written worse...but I just wanted to get this chapter posted. I wrote the skeleton of this chapter out like a week and a half ago...and since then I've just been editing it. I didn't think that it was going to be this long...and to me, it kind of drags. It's repetitive in a way...so, sorry. The next chapter also isn't finished (most of it is written out...and I DO like that one so far. It finally starts to connect some stuff...mainly about the two diamonds that have been mentioned so far. AH, I'm spoiling things. This is why you don't post things at 2:30 in the morning! I babble more than ever!**

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**16. Confessions**

Locke looked at Rachel out of the corner of his eye to see tears streaming down her face. He couldn't help but roll his eyes at her as the music came to a close and the curtain went down. _I didn't think it was that sad…_He thought as Rachel let out a sniff. _So some guy spent his whole life to find his ex girlfriend again, and when he found her, she died protecting him. So what? I don't understand why she jumped in front of the arrows anyway! He was the one who originally left her for another girl! _

"That was amazing," Rachel said to Locke in awe over the sound of the thunderous applause, dabbing the sides of her eyes with her handkerchief. "The Impressario's operas just keep getting better and better."

"Yeah," Locke drawled as he unenthusiastically clapped his hands along with everyone else. Rachel shot out of her chair to give the singers a standing ovation, and when Locke looked around, he noticed that the rest of the audience was doing the same. Reluctantly, he stood up along with the crowd. _I hate opera…_He thought, feeling his hands go raw from the applause. Rachel was still wiping her tears away and Locke let out a chuckle. "How long do we have to clap for?"

"Hush!" She warned gently. Still clapping, she motioned toward the stage where the Impressario was bowing and thanking the audience repeatedly. "We have to applaud the creative genius who put his heart and soul into this production!"

After a few minutes, Locke's hands went numb, so he plopped back down in his seat. "Yep, I'm done clapping."

"What are you doing?" Rachel shrieked when she noticed what he did. She grabbed him by the arm and tried to pull him back up into a standing position. "Get up!"

"Rachel, this could go on for days," he said with an annoyed glance toward the stage. "I'm just waiting for it to die down a little bit…and for the feeling to return to my hands."

"You're embarrassing me!" She snapped, once again grabbing his arm. When he saw that there were several people looking his way and glaring, he obeyed Rachel's wishes and stood up. He didn't think that it was that big of a deal that he was sitting, but apparently he was wrong. "Thank you."

By the time he reached his feet, the lights went up again and everyone started to depart the theater. Locke considered verbally expressing his relief, but he didn't want Rachel to give him that look again. "So, uh, where are we going now?"

"To the after party, of course!" Her voice was chipper, but Locke knew it was partially an act. When she and the Baron still lived in Jidoor, they went to the opera once a week for the Baron had reserved a box for the two of them. However, when they had to go undercover, the Baron sold the reserved spot, leaving Rachel devastated. Locke could tell that that she was excited to get dressed up again and go to the opera, but it reminded her of how much had changed since someone tried to take the Clemix Diamond out of her family's possession.

Locke followed Rachel to the ballroom where the reception was going to take place, and broadly smiled at the guards that stood at every corner. _Dammit, this place is so heavily guarded…_He thought, smiling at another soldier. _Just stay calm, Locke. The more suspicious you look, the quicker they're gonna find out why you're really here and the quicker Rachel will kill you…_ To solidify his thoughts, he looked at Rachel, who wasn't even paying attention to him. Her smile had faded and her face even turned pale.

"I haven't been to a party like this since my own," Rachel murmured under her breath as she looked around. She gripped his arm tighter with every decoration that she saw.

"Same here," Locke agreed with a nod of his head. _Well, since Rachel isn't caring right now, I might as well find the singer. She has to be around here somewhere…_He thought, scanning the crowd for Maria. Instead of finding the opera star, he saw Xane standing against the railing of the elegant staircase taking a sip of whatever was in his glass.

"It's funny, ya know?" She continued with a sigh, not realizing that Locke wasn't listening to her. "I grew up with this kind of stuff; parties every weekend and such. I hated it through the day of my party, but now that I look back, I really miss it. Everyone fussing over the preparations, spending hours getting ready…seeing that smile on my father's face. I haven't seen him smile in so long. It makes me wonder if he…has forgotten how."

"Uh huh," Locke replied, even though he didn't hear a word she said. He locked eyes with Xane and smiled at him. Turning to Rachel, he kissed her on the cheek. "I'll be back in like three minutes. Don't try to miss me too much."

She widened her eyes at him in shock. The look was because she was opening up her heart about her past and he simply let it go in one ear and out the other. "What? Where are you going? You're just going to leave me here?"

"I'm going to the men's room." He hated to lie to her, but with a sigh, she seemed to buy it. "I won't be gone long, I promise. In the mean time, why don't you get us some champagne or something?"

"Okay," she replied with a nod, turning on her heel toward a waiter who was carrying around a small tray of drinks.

Knowing he was in the clear, he made his way through the large crowd of people to the foyer of the Opera House and stood by one of the stone pillars. Locke wasn't sure if they had an actual purpose besides for decoration, but he shook off his thoughts and waited for Xane.

"So what'd you think of it?" Locke turned his head toward the sound of the voice and saw that it was Xane. He had a smile on his face and Locke shot him a disgusted look over his question. "That look just screams that you just had a grand old time. Hold in your excitement, Locke!"

"I was bored out of my fucking mind," he responded quietly, making sure that no one around him heard his insult toward the opera or his usage of profanity. He figured he had his share of glares from earlier when he sat down during the Impressario's standing ovation. "Now, let's get that thing so you can get out of here and I can pretend to have a good time with Rachel."

Xane chuckled and crossed his arms. "I don't get it. Why do you put up with it, man? Women aren't worth this much trouble."

"Well, Rachel is," Locke stated with a small smile. "Anyone else? No. But Rachel is worth everything I go through. That includes going to operas that will make her happy."

"How sentimental," Xane said with a playful roll of his eyes. "Okay, well, I don't think Maria is out in the ballroom yet. I guess that means she's probably still getting changed out of her opera costume and into real clothing so she can show off the pretty diamond to the public."

"Okay, so we'll wait for her in the ballroom?" Locke asked, trying to make a stable plan as quickly as possible so Rachel wouldn't wonder what happened to him.

"Yeah, sure," Xane said sarcastically, nodding his head. "Let's watch her every move like a pair of hawks and make a bet of who will get caught first. Great idea, Locke."

"Shut up," Locke threw back, sighing. "I don't know! I don't see you coming up with a better plan! Ya know, we really should've thought this whole thing out better before actually getting here."

"You want a plan?" Xane asked as Locke nodded. "Okay, how about this? Stealthily make your way into her dressing room and get her out of the diamonds. Then when she's not paying attention, be your sneaky self and take them."

Locke narrowed his eyes at his friend and tried not to laugh. "'Get her out of the diamonds?' What the hell does that mean? I'm not going to try to get her out of her clothing, thank you very much. I have a girlfriend."

"I didn't really mean it in that sense, but now that you mention it, it could work," Xane replied with another sly smile. "What Rachel doesn't know won't kill her."

"No!" Locke cried, receiving several startled looks from the other guests that were around him. He sighed and lowered his voice. "I think emphatically not! I refuse. If you want to go in there, knock yourself out, but don't even think that I will do it. There has to be another way."

"Okay, but we need to make sure that she's not surrounded by a million people or, worse, a million guards," Xane said, looking around at the people who were starting to walk into the foyer for fresh air. "We better hurry though or else we're gonna—"

"What's going on?"

Locke shut his eyes and grimaced for he recognized the voice instantly. _Oh shit! _He thought as he slowly turned around and gave Rachel a nervous smile. "H-Hi, honey. What are you doing here?"

"I'd like to ask you the same question," she replied, not taking her eyes off of Xane. She had her arms crossed and her toe made loud clicking noises every time it hit the ground. "Why, hello, Mr. Riley. I didn't know that you liked opera."

"Uh, I really don't." Locke elbowed him in the arm, causing him to let out a grunt in pain. "I mean, I do, but not a whole lot of people know about it. I don't like everyone to see my sensitive side, so I keep it to myself. A-And Locke. He knows about my passion for opera too."

"Yuh huh," Locke agreed, both of them nodding profusely and wearing fake grins on their faces.

"Oh really?" Rachel turned her nose higher in the air and huffed. "What a coincidence that you would be here on the same night as Locke as I."

Both men remained quiet as she shook her head at them. Locke took a step forward and gently touched her on the arm. "Rachel, this will only take a few minutes, I promise you."

Her jaw dropped as she let out a scoff. She opened her mouth to say something, but the words didn't come out. Putting her hand out in front of her, she began laughing in disbelief. "Don't tell me you came here to work, Locke Cole."

"I…Yeah," Locke said, bowing his head in shame. There wasn't a way to deny it, for there would be no other reason for Xane to be at the Opera House and Rachel knew it. "I'm sorry."

"Unbelievable," she whispered as she narrowed her eyes at him. Exhaling, she turned around and started to walk out of the opera house.

"Shit," Locke muttered, torn between chasing after Rachel and finishing the job of going after the diamond. Letting his gaze switch from Rachel to Xane, he said, "I don't know what the hell to do! What do I do?"

"I can't make your decision for you," Xane stated with a shrug. "Vaughn will kill you with his own two hands if you give up this hunt and chase after her, but I won't tell you what to do." Nodding to Xane, Locke made his decision and began walking toward the exit of the opera house. "It's been nice knowing ya, Locke!"

"I refuse to let her go!" He said over his shoulder, throwing the front doors open and picking up his pace.

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"Rachel!" Locke cried as he ran to catch up with his girlfriend. She was walking slowly, so it didn't take him long to reach her. "Rachel, come on."

"No!" She spat, not even bothering to look in his direction. "I wanted to go out and have a fun and intimate night, just the two of us. I had the whole night planned! First we would go to the opera, then we'd go back to Kohlingen and I'd make us some dinner. I didn't expect to run into Xane, or, goddesses forbid, find out that you had to work at the same time!"

She whipped her head at him at the last part of her sentence and Locke blinked in surprise. There was harshness in her eyes that he'd never seen before and prayed that he would never have to see again. After a second of silence, he looked down at his shoes. "It wasn't the original plan, I'll tell you that."

"Oh?" She challenged, raising an eyebrow at him. "Then what was?"

"I was all for having a perfect evening with you, but Vaughn—"

"So this is all Vaughn's fault now?" She asked with a scoff. "This is completely like you, Locke. Can't you just take the blame on yourself for once?"

"You know that I would if it _was_ my fault, but it's not!" He threw his hands in the air and stopped walking. She turned on her heel and faced him again with her arms still crossed and her lips a fine line on her face. "I didn't have a choice in this. It was a once in a lifetime opportunity and if I didn't go up on it, Vaughn never would've let me forget it."

"And that's bad because?" She asked, still not getting his point. "Me being able to get tickets to the opera again was a once in a lifetime opportunity, don't you see that?"

Before speaking again, Locke walked up to her and took her hands in his. Surprisingly enough, she looked back into his eyes and he was relieved when he saw them soften significantly. "In case you haven't noticed, Vaughn hates that we're dating. End of story."

"Why?" She narrowed her eyes at her own question. "It's your choice, not his. As far as I'm concerned, he shouldn't have any say in it."

"I should've figured it out a long time ago, but I didn't," Locke started to say, sighing during a brief pause. Giving the area a once over to make sure that they were alone, he continued. "There's something about that diamond that's making Vaughn go crazy and he knows you have it."

Rachel scoffed and shook her head. "Again with the damn diamond. I would love to throw it in the bottom of the ocean so the world wouldn't have to fight over it. People are so greedy it makes me sick."

"I don't think it's a greed issue," Locke stated as he ran his fingers through his hair. "But, I don't exactly have any proof to back that up."

"I don't even understand this whole treasure hunting thing!" She exclaimed. "You promised me that you would take me out with you, and you never have. What is the big secret about it that you're hiding?"

Locke blinked his eyes in surprise again. "Wow, I wasn't expecting you to bring that one up."

"Well, surprise, I am," she replied, putting her hands on her hips. "Maybe if you would take me out, I would understand why this diamond is such a big deal."

"You're technically with me right now when I was on a hunt, does that count?" He asked with a pleading smile. She shook her head and he sighed. "I didn't think you would've gone for that, but hey, it was worth a shot."

"What were you trying to find here, anyway? Was it for the diamonds that Maria was borrowing from the Queen of Doma?" She continued to glare at him and he started to walk in the general direction of Jidoor again. "Don't try to walk away from me, Locke Cole! You came with me only because of this treasure hunt and now you're just going to avoid the topic? You brought this upon yourself, so you better damn well answer me."

"What do you want to know?" He shot back, not breaking his stride. He could hear her small feet walk closer to him, but he wasn't about to stop. "Why I love the thrill of it? Why I basically live my life to find out more about the history of this world? That's the main gist of it. I love history and I want to unravel the world's secrets."

Rachel gently grabbed him by the arm and looked up at him. "Okay, that's a good answer to why you are a treasure hunter, but I already knew that and it doesn't explain what you were after. You look kind of empty handed, so unless you passed it on to Xane, I'm assuming that you didn't get what you were after?"

"Like you said, it was the Alexander Diamond," he answered, avoiding the topic of him having an unsuccessful hunt. "That's it. Another diamond that Vaughn wanted for some reason. Something's up with him, and I'm not sure what it is, but I am rather curious."

"Why didn't you just tell me?" The cold look in her eye was replaced by a hurt one. "I probably would've been excited if you were going to go on a hunt with me, to be honest with you. When are we going to go on a hunt together, anyway?"

"Rachel," he said slowly with a sigh, looking up at the sky so he wouldn't have to look at her. "I know that I promised, but I can't take you on a hunt with me. It's too dangerous, too risky. I don't want to put you in danger."

She gently cupped his cheek with her hand so she could direct his eyes to look into her own. "Locke, are you breaking a promise with me?"

Guilt struck his heart, so he wrapped her in his arms, resting his chin on the top of her head. "Heh, when you put it that way, you make me look like such an asshole."

"But there isn't another way to put it!" She said, looking up at him. She was frowning again and broke her way out of his embrace. "Locke, come on. Do you think I'll get in the way or something? You're breaking the first promise that you've ever made with me!"

"You think I want anything to happen to you? Do you think I could stand it?" He asked her, putting his hands on her shoulders and narrowing his eyes at her. "Treasure hunting is a very dangerous thing to do, and Rachel, you're the most important thing in my life. I…"

"You what?" She asked him, slightly afraid of what he was going to say. He stood up straight again, taking his hands off her shoulders and putting a finger under her chin.

"I love you." She inhaled as her eyes became wider, and he wasn't sure what her expression meant. He brought her into a passionate kiss and held her closer to him. Although he had played around with her about love before, he had never come out and bluntly said the three words in that context.

Breaking the kiss, she pressed her lips together and gave him a quizzical look. "Are you sure?"

"I've never been more positive of anything in my life," he told her with a nervous laugh. "Actually, I've never been sure of anything in my life but my love for you."

"What about treasure hunting?" She asked as she scrunched her nose together. Locke chuckled and put his arm around her so they could walk back toward the opera house.

"I even have doubts about that some of the time." _Yeah, that's because Vaughn hides so many secrets from me…_He thought as Rachel stood on her tip toes to give him a peck on the cheek. "That's exactly the reason why I can't risk your life like that. I never know what's going to happen when it comes to treasure hunting, but I know that I will always love you."

"Oh, all right. I guess I'll stop bothering you about it for a while then," she mumbled with a pout.

"Thanks," Locke replied, letting out a relieved sigh.

"But don't think you're off the hook yet!" She informed him as she pointed to him for emphasis. "I'm persistent, so you will give in! I swear to the goddesses, you will!"

Locke chuckled and squeezed her shoulder. "Okay, you can think what you want, but I'm probably just as stubborn as you are."

"Locke?" She began, looking at her feet.

"Hmm?"

She tilted her head toward him and warmly smiled at him. "I love you too."


	17. The Frozen Esper

**This chapter took me a very long time to finish. I started this chapter about four months ago, but I only added bit by bit...and finally put the rest of it together last night. I edited the hell out of it over the last few months... and edited more tonight... and I'm still not sure how happy I am with it. HOWEVER, now the story is going to make more sense... Meaning that the stuff that is happening in Locke's 'present' is starting to connect to his past. Not anything extremely significant, but the next few chapters WILL get more interesting, I PROMISE! (It's about time, ya know? I'm already at chapter 17) This chapter obviously starts out after chapter 14; after Locke and Celes escape South Figaro. Okay, I have the next like six chapters written, so I will probably post one a night or something like that. Oh yeah, I didn't intend to make this chapter so long, but there wasn't a decent spot to cut it. I hope it doesn't drag too much...**

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**17. The Frozen Esper**

Locke and Celes quickly made their way through Narshe, going through the front entrance instead of trekking through the mines. The guards were gone from the front gate, so they knew that they wouldn't run into any trouble, and it was a direct route. They ran up the stairs to Arvis' house as fast as they could, stopping once they reached the door. A window was opened a slight crack, so they could hear the elder speaking to everyone else inside.

"Oh thank the goddesses," Locke muttered under his breath as he rested his hand on the doorknob and recognized the voices that were coming from within. "Everyone is safe and okay."

"But…" The elder began with a sigh and a heavy heart. "That was only because Doma was collaborating with the Returners! If we make that mistake, Narshe might end up the same way."

"That's nonsense!" Locke cried out when he heard the elder's remark. He flung open the door so hard that it hit the wall as he and Celes walked into the living room of Arvis' house. "The Empire doesn't give a damn about the Returners!"

"Locke!" Terra exclaimed in happiness when she saw him, then flung her arms around him. "You're all right!"

"Of course I am!" He replied with his trademark smile as he hugged her back. After releasing Terra from his embrace, he started to walk toward the back of Arvis' house, shouting over his shoulder, "Great, now let's get out of here!"

"Wha—why?" Arvis asked in surprise as Locke stopped in his tracks and turned toward everyone again. "Locke, what did you find out in South Figaro?"

"Well, first of all, South Figaro is now in control of the Empire. Everyone there is scared, but who wouldn't be?" Locke began with a shake of his head. He looked over at Edgar and the young king's face was flushed with anger. "They're not attacking the citizens, so I guess things will be fine over there for the time being. But maybe they're staying civil because the Empire's poised to attack Narshe right now!"

"What?" Edgar cried as everyone gasped and began to murmur amongst themselves. "You've gotta be kidding us here!"

"I wouldn't joke about something like this, so let's go!" He urged as he motioned toward the door.

"Locke," Banon began in a calm tone of voice, taking a few steps closer to Locke. "This is incredibly serious. Where'd you hear that?"

Locke looked over at Celes, who blushed a deep shade of red from the gaze. "Celes, here, used to be one of the Empire's generals. She was able to tell me this."

"What do you mean she 'used to be?'" The elder asked, raising an eyebrow in suspicion as Celes bowed her head in shame. Before she had a chance to explain herself, Cyan's eyes went wide and he slightly growled.

"I knew she looked familiar! Sir Gau, out of my way!" With great force, he threw the young boy out of the way, causing him to run into Terra. If it weren't for Edgar catching her, she would've fallen backward. Locke was about to protest and ask this man what his problem was, but before he could speak, Cyan continued with, "This is General Celes! She torched Maranda! She's nothing more than an Imperial spy!"

"Whoa!" Locke snapped as he put his hand on Cyan's shoulder to stop him from attacking the poor young woman. "Just who the hell do you think you are?"

"I am Cyan, retainer to the king of Doma!" He explained as he tried to get closer to Celes. Locke tightened his grip on Cyan, and the older man glared at him. "Are you aware that the Empire just poisoned the river, thus murdering all the citizens of Doma?"

"Oh no," Celes exhaled as she looked at Locke with wide eyes. "They did it. Kefka did it!"

"You knew about this?" Cyan shrieked, reaching for the sword that was at his hip. "That's it! She must be stopped! Now, young man, stand aside!"

Celes' patience ran thin so she reached for her sword as well, causing everyone to gasp. To stop them from killing each other, Locke literally stepped between the two of them. "WAIT!" He cried as the elderly man's eyes burned in Celes' direction. "I don't know who you think are you to make judgments, but Celes has joined the Returners! She's fighting with us now!"

"But…!"

"I promised I'd protect her," Locke continued to explain as his eyes began to flare up as well. His voice had an edge to it and he didn't realize his tone. He firmly continued with, "I _will not _back out on my word."

"Locke…" Locke turned his head to Edgar, who was giving Locke a queer look.

"What is it, Edgar?" Locke asked, his voice still sharp.

Edgar took a few steps closer to Locke, his voice still gentle. "Are you still thinking about…that?"

Instead of responding, Locke shot Edgar a warning glare. _Why am I getting so worked up about this anyway? _He thought, clenching his fits by his side. _It's because she looks so damn much like her…_After a second, Locke inhaled and looked off to the side. "Edgar, we'll talk about this later."

Terra could feel the tension in the room and wanted to drive the attention away from Locke, so she timidly walked closer to Cyan and bowed her head. "Sir, I was also an Imperial soldier."

"_What?_" Cyan cried as he whipped around to face Terra. Her head was still pointed to the ground as he walked closer to her. Everyone remained quiet, so he looked away from Terra and made his eyes pass over the other people in the room. "How are we supposed to be fighting the Empire when we have their spies around?"

"Spies?" Terra cried as she jerked her head up. "I never said that!"

At the same time that Terra spoke, Celes put her hands on her hips and exclaimed, "Now, wait just a minute!"

"Enough!" Banon stated, shocking everyone by the severity in his tone. "I do believe there are more important matters at hand than futile bickering like this."

"But these two women worked for the Empire!" Cyan restated, pointing to Terra and Celes as he spoke. Locke noticed that Arvis, the Elder of Narshe, and Banon were all watching Celes to make sure that she wasn't going to reach for her weapon again. Her hand rested on her hip, but Locke could tell that she wanted to slice Cyan in half. "Do correct me if I am mistaken, but the Empire _is_ the enemy."

"First of all," Edgar began calmly as he took a few steps toward Cyan. "Banon is right, there isn't time to have mindless discussions such as these. Besides, like Locke said, Celes quit the Imperial army, and Terra here was under the control of the army against her will."

"I know there isn't anything that I can say, but please, you _have_ to trust me," Celes explained, moving her hands from her hips to across her chest. "I wouldn't go around spreading things like this." Cyan harrumphed, causing Locke to roll his eyes.

"Look, pal," Locke started sternly as he faced Cyan one more time. "I don't care if you like it or not, but she's not leaving. She's now with us, she now wants to help us, and most importantly, I gave her my word."

Cyan gritted his teeth and Locke looked over at Edgar to say something else for he was losing his patience. _I don't want to argue with a stubborn old man…_He thought impatiently, shaking his head. Edgar took a few steps forward and bowed his head. "The Empire's evil, we all know that. But not _all_ of its citizens are! There are still many people out there like the Returners who are against the doings of Gestahl and his puppets."

"I'm one of them," Celes pointed out, widening her stance and tilting her head upward. "I know what the Empire is up to and I know that they're coming to Narshe right now. If you want to live, I would suggest you listen to Locke and focus on what's going on."

"I…I mean…" Cyan stammered, astonished that a woman would stand up to him in such a manner, yet alone a woman who was so much younger than himself. He sighed in defeat as he nodded his head. "Very well, I'm listening."

"That's better," she snapped with a flick of her wrist toward Locke. "All right, Locke, what's the plan?"

Locke widened his eyes at her statement, and then slowly started to turn a nice shade of red. "That's flattering that you want to put me in charge and all, Celes, but this is Banon's duty. He's the one that runs the show around here."

"Oh," she said quietly and looked toward the old mentor. "I'm terribly sorry. I didn't mean to step on your toes or anything."

"Not a problem," Banon replied with an amused smile. "Okay everyone, we need to think about this rationally. If the Empire is going to attack Narshe, we need to figure out if we're going to fight or if we're going to see if there is another way."

Sabin let out a chuckle and walked over to Cyan. "Oh, this is amusing," he said, putting his elbow on Cyan's shoulder as an armrest. "Banon, no offence, but there isn't another way. The Empire won't want to reason with us."

"Sabin's right," Edgar piped in with a proud smile toward his younger brother. "The Empire seems to think with their swords and Magitek weapons and they aren't very fond of giving a large explanation of their actions. Therefore, I guess we just need to know where to strike from…?"

As if an answer to Edgar's question, a Narshe guard ran into Arvis' house. "Emergency!" He shouted as he tried to catch his breath. "The Empire cometh!"

The elder let out a laugh, and Locke could tell that it was a laugh out of disbelief. "Ha, I guess this settles it. We really have no choice. Let's make ready for war!"

Banon nodded and walked closer to Celes. "Young lady, you know the Empire's plans? Can you give us any insight?"

"I wish I could," Celes replied quietly as she looked down at her hands. "I was proclaimed a traitor before they began making plans for this attack. In all honesty, it was an attack planned by Kefka, so I'm not even sure if Gestahl knows about it. Kefka does a lot of things behind Gestahl's back, so this isn't anything new. However, when I was being shipped to South Figaro, I overheard some Imperial soldiers talking about how they found 'it' in Narshe and they were going to attack and get 'it.' I'm not sure what 'it' is though."

Terra gasped and looked at Arvis as she had a thought. "The Esper!"

Banon nodded in agreement and eyed everyone in the room. "Terra's right. They're after the frozen Esper that was discovered a short time ago."

"We moved it into the hills," the elder informed them all, causing Locke and Edgar to practically sprint toward the door. "We wanted to put it in a safer spot."

"Then we're going after it," Edgar announced, opening the back door and pointing to it. "Banon, you know these mines better than we do, so why don't you lead the way?"

Banon nodded and walked out the door with everyone closely behind. Terra walked up to Locke and looked up at him. She wasn't smiling, but there was a sparkle of excitement in her eyes, leaving Locke bewildered.

"You know, if I didn't know any better, I'd say you were enjoying this entire situation," he said as he playfully ruffled up her hair.

"No, but I want to know what the Empire is up to," she replied with a stately nod then fixed her hair. "I think this is going to be the only way to find out. Plus, I want a closer look at that Esper. I just…have a strange feeling about that word. I know it sounds weird, but every time I hear it, I break out into goosebumps. I wonder why that is?"

"Who knows?" He shrugged as he put his hands deeply into his pockets. The biting wind nipped at his face and he felt himself shudder. "Damn, Narshe is so cold all the time. I think I'm used to the Western Continent or something."

Terra looked down at her feet then slowly looked back up at Locke. "So, Locke, where'd you meet that girl?"

"In South Figaro," Locke responded with a smile, glancing ahead shoulder to see Celes and Edgar talking. "I think you'd get along with her rather well. You know, she can use magic too."

With a gasp, Terra sprinted to where Celes was. Locke chuckled as she stopped Celes to drill her with questions. _At least we have some information on the Empire now…_He thought as he passed the two girls and climbed up some steps. _Who knows what would be going on right now if she didn't overhear about Kefka and the poison…_He whipped his head up at his own thought and didn't even bother finishing the rest of the sentence in his head.

"Dammit!" Smacking his hand against his forehead, he ran up to where Edgar was and made sure that he was a decent distance away from everyone else before he spoke. "Edgar, have you ever had one of those enlightenment moments several moments after someone says something?"

"I'm listening, Locke," he said, giving the young man his full attention. "You've been jumpy ever since you came to Narshe, so what is it?"

"Edgar, think about what what's-his-name said about what happened at Doma recently," Locke began to explain, referring to Cyan. "The poison. Doesn't the entire situation sound familiar? The Empire wanting something so Kefka goes behind their backs and uses poison to weaken their defenses?"

"What are you talking about?" Edgar narrowed his eyes at his young friend. "Nothing is sounding familiar about it."

"That's what Kefka did in Jidoor at the VanLente's!" Locke exclaimed, looking around to make sure that no one heard him. He lowered his voice and continued to explain. "It's exactly what happened at Rachel's 19th birthday party a while back! The Empire wanted the Clemix Diamond, so Kefka poisoned the guards and tried to get it!"

Edgar chuckled and shook his head. "I still don't get where you're going with this."

"I'm getting to the point!" Locke cried, once again lowering his voice. "Okay, well, also a while back, Vaughn had Xane and I go to the Opera House to steal that necklace that the Queen of Doma had right before she died. It contained the…the…the…what the hell was the name of that damn thing? You know what I'm talking about?"

With a rather loud gasp, Edgar grabbed onto Locke's shoulder in surprise. "Dear Goddesses! The Alexander jewel was in the center of the necklace! But wait," he said, calming down as he thought about it again. "Vaughn sent you out to get it, like, a year and a half ago though, Locke. You don't suppose it took Kefka that long to find out where it was, do you?"

"I do," Locke replied simply. "It's all connecting. I mean, look at the poison thing. At least Kefka is remotely predictable and uses the same method."

"Look at these two." Locke and Edgar whipped around to see Terra and Sabin pointing to them and shaking their heads. "They're quiet, whispering, and looking around to make sure that they're not being heard."

"Yep," Sabin agreed with a chuckle. "If I didn't know any better, I would say that they're gossiping."

"We're not gossiping, we're discussing some very important business related…things," Edgar clarified, intriguing Terra and Sabin even more. The two of them exchanged glances before running up to Locke and Edgar. "We can't discuss anything with you two here!"

"Aw, you're no fun!" Terra said with a pout. She grabbed Locke's arm and when he looked at her she stuck her lip out even more. "I'm curious! Tell me!"

"Hmm, let me think about it for a second." Locke put his hand to his chin and looked up at the sky. After a second, he looked back at Terra and gave her a pat on the top of her head. "Not a chance."

Before Terra could respond, Banon froze in his tracks upon reaching a flat terrain area. When the others reached him, they saw what caused him to stop walking; there was part of the Imperial army lining up about 300 feet away.

"Lookie what we have here," Sabin said with a nervous chuckle, rubbing his left temple with his hand. "The army wanted to throw us a welcome party."

"Like he said earlier," Edgar began to say to Banon as he pointed at his brother. "Reasoning isn't going to do the trick here. We have to fight, there's no other way."

"Agreed," Banon replied with a nod. He took a few steps closer to Terra and put his hand on her shoulder. "Are you prepared?"

Terra looked at him in shock then put her hand on the hilt of her sword. "Um, yes. I…I'm prepared."

"Going down there full force will leave blind sides open and the soldiers will be able to make their way into the town," Celes explained, pointing as she spoke. "I guess if we go into three groups there won't be…a…"

Locke narrowed his eyes at her as she slowed down her sentence, but realized that she had her eyes fixated on something. There was another man coming behind the row of soldiers and Locke knew he could recognize that ridiculous outfit anywhere. "Well, I guess a party isn't complete without a clown."

"What's he saying?" Celes asked, halfway in a panic as she watched Kefka weave his way through the soldiers. Locke could see them nodding periodically, but he couldn't hear Kefka's voice. As he looked around, he realized that everyone had shrugged his or her soldiers. "Damn it, I wish I could hear him. Well, now that I think about it, I'm not sure if I really want to get that close to him."

"Very good point." Terra stood on her tiptoes to look over Locke's shoulder.

"They're coming!" Banon announced when he noticed that the soldiers all started to walk closer to their location on the mountain. "I'll stay here. The rest of you split up and stay healthy."

"Since Celes and I can do magic, we should be in two different groups so we can do cure spells." Locke nodded at Terra as she stood between he and Edgar. "I'll go with you two guys."

Celes and Cyan exchanged looks and they both huffed at the same time. "I'm not going in the same group as him!" Celes clarified, walking to the other side of Terra, Locke and Edgar. She looked up at Sabin, who had a goofy smile plastered on his face. "I guess that means I'm going with you, Muscles."

"No complaints here," Sabin said, looking at Locke and giving him a wink. Locke chuckled as he shook his head.

"All right, let's get this over with," Locke muttered, grabbing his dagger. "The sooner this is over, the sooner we can make sure that Esper is still safe."

As quickly as they could, they made their way through the soldiers down to where Kefka was. Locke was thankful that they were all basically healthy and Terra still looked like she could do quite a few more spells. Edgar, Terra, and Locke met up with Sabin and Celes right in time to see the amused look on Kefka's face.

"Ah, look, it's Miss Chere, the traitor!" Kefka looked at Celes and enjoyed how she was fuming over his sentence.

"Yeah, no thanks to you, you rat bastard," she shot back, standing in a fighting stance with her sword in hand.

"It's a good thing I got you kicked out of the army," he began as he shook his head and clicked his tongue. "You're too big of a bitch to be a general."

Without missing a beat, Celes retorted, "And you're too big of an asshole to run the world, so I guess we're even now, aren't we?"

Instead of saying anything back, Kefka struck out at Celes with his sword, causing her to stumble backward. Ignoring the blood that was now starting to ooze out of the new wound in her arm, she stood up. Locke figured this was the best time to jump in to help, and Edgar, Sabin, and Terra joined in as well.

After several minutes of intense fighting, Locke realized that he was starting to pant; yet Kefka was completely fine. As a matter of fact, he was laughing and mocking the five of them as they fought him with all their might. _What the hell is this guy made out of? _He thought, hearing Kefka's laugh echo throughout the mountains.

"Well, thank you for this entertainment! I don't know about you kids, but I had fun!" Kefka exclaimed, effortlessly dodging another attack from Edgar. "Don't think you've won. I'll be back."

"And we'll be ready," Terra said, not putting her guard down.

"Aack!" He made a face at her, then turned on his heel and began walking back through the mines toward South Figaro. Before he was out of sight, he shouted over his shoulder, "I won't forget this!"

Edgar sighed as he put his autocrossbow away. "And again he has to have the last word."

"Where's Banon?" Terra asked and they all turned toward Cyan, Gau, and Banon.

"Where's the Esper?" Edgar countered as he started to walk toward that direction.

Breaking out into a jog, Locke asked, "Is it okay? I mean, I know the army didn't get past us, but I just want to make sure that nothing happened to it."

"I'm glad you're all safe," Banon said when everyone reached him. "Now, let's go find that Esper. The Elder gave me pretty specific directions of where it was located, so it should only take us a few minutes to find it. I suggest that we walk briskly."

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Locke felt his skin break out into goosebumps when they arrived where the Esper was hidden. It was much larger than he thought it was going to be and he was quite frightened by it. It was encased in ice and wasn't moving, but he still wanted to keep a great distance away from it.

"Can it…still be alive?" Cyan asked Banon, even though he was still looking at the large Esper.

"No way, that's impossible!" Sabin responded with a chuckle. Looking at everyone else, his confidence faded and turned his head toward Banon. "Um, it _is_ impossible…right?"

Locke noticed the look on Terra's face, and he wasn't sure how to describe it. _Maybe awe? _He thought as he studied her more. Her face was pale, yet she didn't tremble. She looked at the Esper, blinking occasionally in a dreamlike state. With a gasp, she started to back away, so Locke rushed to her side. "Terra! What is it?"

"Nooo!" She shut her eyes tightly and a bright light was emitted out of the Esper, causing her to scream. When Locke felt the light hit him, it knocked him backward at such a force that he flew over the edge of the cliff. Luckily he was able to grab onto the edge without falling, but he hit his head extremely hard in the process.

"Locke!" Celes shouted, rushing to the edge of the cliff and helping him back onto solid ground. He fell to his knees and kept his eyes on Terra.

"Terra, what is it?" He asked as the young girl slowly walked closer to the Esper. The Esper let out another beam of light, knocking everyone down again. Locke cursed under his breath as he slowly sat up, but he was starting to feel dizzy from hitting his head. "What the hell…"

The Esper continued to glow and Terra still walked closer to the Esper. "Terra 'n the Esper…" Sabin mumbled, just loudly enough for Locke to hear him. "What's going on here?"

"There's some kinda reaction!" Edgar replied, stating the obvious as Terra began glowing along with the Esper. "Terra, maybe you shouldn't go any further."

"What?" Terra asked the Esper, putting her hand on her head. "What am I feeling?" Locke watched in horror as Terra talked to the frozen Esper, then answered it as if it was communicating with her by the flashes of light. "Huh? W…what's going on? Please…tell me! Who am I? _Who?_"

"Terra!" Locke cried out, another blinding flash pain going through his brain. He tried to get to his feet, but before he was halfway up, the Esper flashed again. When the light struck him, it pushed him down and his head hit the ground, turning his world into darkness.


	18. An Expression of Love

**This is by far the largest update that I've ever done...Seven chapters all at once. I originally was going to post them one at a time, but then I was like, "hey, why not?" I mean, they were done and everything... and knowing that 19-23 are some of my favorite chapters in this fic, I thought I would just post them at the same time. Now of course... heh... I really have to work on chapter 25. Right now there isn't much to it...maybe about 2000 words, but as you can tell, these chapters are all closer to 3000 words and up. I couldn't help it! lol! Anyway, this chapter takes place several months after the last Locke/Rachel chapter. (It's technically April according to my timeline. Oh yes, I literally have a timeline written out of when each of these chapters occur...sad, isn't it?) All right...here ya are!**

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**18. An Expression of Love**

"Locke, when I get my hands on you, you better watch out!" Rachel shouted with a giggle, holding her arms out in front of herself so she wouldn't run into anything. Locke had blindfolded her with his bandana and laughed as she blindly walked around. Most of the way he had guided her by holding her hands, but now they were in a wide open meadow, so he let her walk around. "Are we there yet?"

"Are you aware that you've asked me that question about twenty-five times since we left Kohlingen?" He asked as he circled her in the opposite direction. She turned in a circle to try to follow his voice, causing him to stifle his laughter. "But to answer your question, no. We're not there yet."

"Well, are we _almost_ there?" She asked, stopping to listen to his voice. "Which reminds me, where are you taking me anyway? You didn't tell me."

"If I told you, it would completely ruin the surprise, and what fun would that be?" She turned in the direction of his voice and started to walk closer to him. Right when her fingers almost brushed his shoulder, he jumped out of the way while stifled laughter escaped his lips. "Oooh, almost got me!"

"Oh come on!" She insisted with a turn so she could go closer to his voice again. Locke rushed up to her and grabbed her hands again, causing her to slightly jump and let out a yelp. "That's not funny, Mr. Cole!"

He brought her into an embrace and kissed her gently on the lips. "Yeah, it is!" With a chuckle, he cupped her chin with the palm of his hand and continued with, "Yes, to answer your other question, we are almost there. Let's go."

After another thirty or so feet, he put his hands on her waist. She smiled at him, moving her hand up his arm until she reached his head. She tenderly ran her fingers through his hair, then leaped and pounced on him. With a slight 'oomph!' from surprise, he caught her and swung her around, being careful not to lose his balance. When put her feet gently on the ground, he kissed her again. "Okay, we're here."

"Finally! Can I see now?" With a nod, he gently untied the bandana and let her open her eyes. She looked at him for a second then adverted her attention to the surroundings. In awe, she said, "oh wow. It's beautiful here."

"Yep, it's my favorite getaway spot," he announced as she looked around. The location was a few miles from Kohlingen on a grassy hill that overlooked the ocean. Flowers and trees adorned the area for scenery as the sound of the crashing waves gently ran through the still air. It was a clear night, so the stars shone brightly and twinkled like diamonds against the blue-black abyss of the sky. The moon hung low in the sky and had an appearance of a face from the craters.

Rachel sat down on the ground and propped herself up by her hands as she looked at the moon's distorted reflection on the rippling water. She turned her head up to gaze at her boyfriend, observing the way he stood. His legs were spread about shoulder-width apart as he tied his trademark bandana around his blond hair. His hair was getting longer now; he needed to cut it again but didn't have the time to do it. His eyes glowed as fireflies buzzed around his head, a careless hand brushed them away as he finished the knot.

The corners of his lips slowly turned up into a smile as he saw her stare at him out of the corner of his eye. He chuckled and without looking at her, he asked, "Why are you looking at me like that? Do I have something on my face?"

"Why aren't you sitting with me?" She answered his question with another one as she reached up and grabbed his hand. He faced her and instead of sitting down, he pulled her up to her feet.

"I want you to stand with me," he said as he wrapped her in a tight embrace. She giggled as he gave her a gentle squeeze. He took one arm from her as he reached into his pocket to fish for something. To distract her, he brought her into a passionate kiss, causing her to let out a giggle with the pleasant surprise.

He broke the kiss, but only moved his face an inch away from hers. As he looked deeply into her bright blue eyes, he tenderly lifted up her left hand and slid a diamond solitaire ring on her finger, eliciting a gasp from her lips.

"Oh, Locke…" she whispered as she looked down at the diamond then back up at him.

"Rachel VanLente, will you marry me?"

A single tear fell from her eyes and slid down her cheek as she inhaled a shaky breath from shock. "Yes," she replied so quietly that Locke barely heard her. She flung her arms around his neck as she exclaimed louder, "Yes! Yes!"

"Oh, Rachel," he exhaled as he kissed her again, slightly tasting the salt from her tears that passed over her lips. His hands slid up her back and entwined through her hair as they kissed, their tongues in a dizzy tango with happiness.

Another reason why he loved that spot that he didn't explain to Rachel was that it was in the middle of nowhere, and they would be able to have their privacy. As gently as he could, he began to unbutton the buttons on the back of her dress.

"Right here?" She gasped as she looked at him with a tinge of fear.

"Of course," he replied as he began to nibble at her neck and continued to slowly unbutton. "Do you not like my idea?"

"I love it," she answered mischievously as she threw off his vest and began to undo his belt, again surrendering to his passionate kisses.

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"So, soon to be Mrs. Cole," Locke started as Rachel's pretty face broke out into a smile. He gently ran his fingers through her hair with one hand as he used his other elbow for support. "How are you feeling?"

"I can't even form my thoughts into words right now," she replied with a pleased exhale. "Just so you know, I pretty much have the entire wedding planned out. I want a pretty dress, a small wedding party, only a few guests. I want it to be more of an intimate thing than a big spectacle. I want to get married on a beautiful spring day, and if you haven't noticed, it _is _spring. Also, I want an outdoor wedding. Maybe right here."

"You're right, you do have it planned out," he said with laugh as he bent over and kissed her on the forehead. "Whatever you want though, I'll make it happen."

She smiled then shook her head. "The only thing is that I don't know if my father will abide to my wishes."

"What do you mean?" Locke furrowed his forehead when he saw her face turn downcast. "I know he doesn't like me all that well, but I think he'll have to deal with the fact that I am completely in love with his only daughter and I will do everything in my power to make her happy."

"You already do make me happy, but that's not what I'm afraid of." Locke waited for her to go on, so she sighed and started to run her fingers through the grass that she was laying on. "I'm sure my father will oppose, but like you said, he'll have to deal with it. I'm just worried that he'll want to have a big, huge wedding and invite all of his noble type friends he hasn't talked to since my party."

"Why would he do that?"

"That's just the way my daddy is, you know that." Hesitantly, Locke nodded in agreement. "That probably wouldn't be the smartest thing for my father to be doing since we are trying to be discreet and everything, but I know he'll mess it up again. He loves that diamond and wants the world to know that he has the most wealth in the world. It just bothers me because he was never like this when mom was around."

Locke could see the tears building up in her eyes and quickly kissed her. "Not to be completely selfish or anything, but this is supposed to be a happy day, not one filled with tears. Therefore, please don't cry or worry about the small things. Like I said, I'll do whatever I can to make you happy."

"And like I already said, you already _do_ make me happy," she whispered softly as he brought him into a deep kiss.

"Okay, since that topic is over now, let's start a new one," he said quickly and she nodded. "If you had one wish, one wish at all right now, what would it be?"

"You mean besides have my father approve of my love for you?" Locke's cheerful look fell from the reminder, so she quickly smiled. "Okay, I'm sorry, that was the wrong thing to say."

"It's just a sore spot, that's all," he replied with a shrug then attempted to smile again. "Anyway, if you had any _other_ wish, what would it be?"

She thought about it for a second, then looked at Locke slyly. "My other wish is to have you take me on a hunt," she replied earnestly with a touch of playfulness to her voice. Locke's smile faded away as he slowly backed away from her. "What?"

"Well, first of all, that was the last thing that I thought you were going say," he began with a sigh. "Look, Rachel, we've been over this a million times. It's way too dangerous."

"Oh no, not this argument again," she sighed as she sat up and wrapped her arms around her legs. "We've been engaged for less than four hours and we're already arguing about the one thing that you love."

"It's the second thing I love. The first is you," he clarified with a nod of his head and tapped her on the nose with his finger. Instead of grinning at his statement, she continued to frown. "Oh come on, Rachel, don't be that way."

"I'm not being 'that way,'" she interrupted as he put his hand on her ankle then slowly trailed his hand up past her knee to her thigh. "You promised me on the first night that we met that you would take me on a hunt with you, and that was over a year ago. Just once, please."

"You're not going to like it, I know you're not," he protested as he sat up and kissed her temple.

"Can't I judge that for myself?" She slightly pouted her lips as she looked at him, causing him to chuckle. "You think I'm boring."

"Ha, where'd you come up with that insane justification?" He asked as she put her head on her knees. He moved closer to her and wrapped his arms around her. "Come on, Rachel. I just can't take you with me. Don't you trust my opinion on the situation? "

"I do trust you, but please?" She turned her head toward him, pouted her lips, widened her eyes, and batted her eyelashes.

"Oh ho ho, you are number one with the guilt trip," he stated as she transformed her pleading look into a satisfied smile. "However, the answer is still 'no.' I could never live with myself if something happened to you."

"You'd protect me though, right?" She asked as he nodded. "Well, then, you have nothing to worry about!"

Locke remained silent with a grim look on his face as he slowly exhaled. "I just have a bad feeling about it."

"Oh, don't be such a pessimist," she said playfully, giving him a kiss on the cheek. "If I hate it, I'll never bother you about it again. I just feel like especially now that we're getting married, I want to know what you do after you say goodnight to me."

"You mean, what I do besides go hang out with my other three girlfriends?" He joked and Rachel gave him a friendly shove. "You know I'm kidding."

"I know you are, but that's not funny." Although she didn't find humor in it, she was still smiling at him. "Just one hunt. Please."

"Well," he started with a sigh. _Why am I going to say this? _He asked himself as he grabbed his bandana and tied it around his head. "There is something that Vaughn did want me to check out. He didn't give me a full explanation about it yet, but he told me that I had to see him sometime today and he'd fill me in some more. Once I find out all the details about it, I'll take you with me to find whatever it is."

"Really?" She cried, wrapping her arms around him with so much force that he fell on his back, letting out another 'oof' sound with the contact. He laughed as she showered his face with kisses and he slightly pushed her away. "Thank you, thank you, thank you!"

"Only once, Rachel," he clarified as he held up a finger. "Just one time."

"Oh, all right," she said as she leaned over and kissed him again. "Yay! I'm so excited!"

"I think I should get you back home." He quirked an eyebrow at her before he turned to reach for his clothes, which were tossed aside. "Your father will be wondering where you are."

"I can't stay the night with you?" She asked as she placed her hand on his bare chest. "I highly doubt my father will even notice that I'm gone. Besides, we better get used to sleeping together if we're going to get married, ya know."

He rose to his feet and put on his pants. He smirked at her as he zipped them up. "My, my, you are so coy tonight. What's gotten into you?"

"I'm giddy," she announced as she started to slip on her dress. "Am I not allowed to be giddy? I'm going to be married to the most amazing guy in the world. Mrs. Locke Cole. I like the sound of that."

"Well, thanks, but the compliment wasn't necessary," he started as he slightly blushed. He wasn't able to take compliments very well, and he hated the flushed feeling that he always got whenever he received one. She finished buttoning up her dress and faced him. "However, I must admit, I love the sound of that coming from your lips."

"How did I live without you?" She asked with a gentle smile. He walked up to her without his shirt on and kissed her on the forehead. With a loving gaze, he planted another kiss on her nose.

"I think I should ask how _I_ lived without _you_." He bent over and grabbed his shirt. "All right, come on. Let's go back to the Quantz hideout. Just so you know, I'm not supposed to have guests there, but I would be lying if I said that everyone obeyed that rule."

"I'm a not a guest, I'm your _fiancée_," she clarified as she went on her toes with the final word.

"I like the sound of that coming from your lips as well." With a chuckle, he picked her off of her feet and held her in his arms. She wrapped her arms around his neck and looked him deeply in the eyes.

"You're giving me that look again," she told him as he put her back onto her feet.

"I know I am," he responded with a smile.

"So, that was your cue to explain to me what it means."

"It's a look that explains something that I can't explain." She giggled as he entwined her fingers with his own and they started to walk to the hideout. "It's a look that says a thousand words."

"Well, are they good words?" She asked as he bent over and plucked a flower from the ground without breaking his stride. He handed it to her and she gently inhaled its perfume.

"They're the best."


	19. Fragments of Memories

**Even though I'm posting seven chapters in a row, I'm still going to write author's notes on each of them because, dammit, I feel like it. First of all, the title of this chapter is taken from a piece from Final Fantasy VIII. (Honestly, if you listen to it, the beginning sounds like the chorus of Suteki Da Ne from Final Fantasy X!) This chapter also takes place pretty much immediately after chapter 17...and FINALLY the weaving begins. Heh, it only took 19 chapters to have some of your questions answered...but not all of them. Only some of them though! I can't spoil everything all at once now, can I? hee hee... Anyway, I wrote this chapter quite a long time ago... but I'm very happy with the way it turned out. squee... yay!**

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**19. Fragments of Memories**

"Unhh…" Locke muttered as he felt a bright light against his eyelids. He fluttered his eyes open to find himself in a bed in unknown surroundings. As soon as he jerked his head to get a better look, he instantly closed his eyes as a sharp pain jolted through his brain. He slowly rolled over so he wouldn't feel the intense pain again and saw someone with a yellow glow around their head. After blinking a few more times, he was able to focus his eyes and make out that it was just Celes standing over him.

"You're awake?" She asked as he sat up in the bed. A sigh of relief escaped her lips and she put her hand over her heart. "Oh Locke, I was so worried, you have no idea. You were lying so still…I wasn't sure if you were going to wake up."

"Celes, I've been knocked out so many times in my life that it's starting to become a personal hobby of mine," he muttered, putting his hand over his eyes, ignoring her concern. "I guess I just have pretty good luck or something knowing I _have_ woken up every time."

"That's not very funny," she snapped as he slightly chuckled. "Just wait until karma kicks you in the ass for saying that and you _don't_ wake up. Who'll be the one laughing then?"

"Hopefully no one. I don't know about you, but I really wouldn't appreciate people laughing at my funeral." Celes smacked him on his arm for the statement and he groaned as he sat up straight in the bed he was lying in.

"I really don't want to talk about your death," she said with a sigh. "There are definitely more important things that are happening in reality that we should be talking about, like, say 'reality.'"

"Yeah, I know." He rubbed his eyes and he frantically looked around. His eyes were still slightly unfocused, so he wasn't sure if he really didn't know where he was or if he just couldn't see his surroundings clearly. "Wait a minute here. Where am I?"

"Don't you remember? You're in Narshe," she informed him as he grimaced and he stood up. With a shaky breath, he made sure that he wasn't going to fall over, then slowly shook his head. "To be more specific, we're in the bedroom of Arvis' house. Arvis isn't here though; he's at the Elder's place. He figured that we would be able to do all of our own planning to what we're going to do next and then get back to him with our final decision."

"What the hell happened?" He put his hand to his forehead to relieve the headache that continued to grow. Although he was speaking at a normal tone of voice, it still felt too loud. "I feel like something crushed my skull. I haven't felt this way since the last time I was incredibly hung over. Now that I think about it, _that _didn't even feel this bad."

"You were knocked unconscious. Something to do with the light that was emitted from that frozen Esper…" Her voice was very hushed and she looked away from Locke as she spoke, not wanting to continue. Locke thought that he saw her eyes tear up, but he figured it was just his imagination. However, reevaluating everything that she said, he started to remember what had happened.

"Frozen Esper…" he muttered under his breath, pressing the palm of his hand against his head. Another thought emerged in his memory as he started to piece together what happened the previous day and he wondered why only Celes was by him. "Hold on a second. Where's Terra?"

"She changed into a…something, and…took off." Locke narrowed her eyes at her and noticed that she wouldn't make eye contact with him. She sighed and let the information sink into Locke's brain.

"What do you mean, a 'something?'" The memory was lost in his mind and again, Celes wouldn't look at him. _I was probably unconscious at this time…_ "Also, what do you mean, 'she took off?' Where'd she go?"

"She looked like…" She trailed off and bowed her head. There was a moment of silence between the two of them, then she decided if she said it sooner rather than later, Locke would accept the news better. "She looked like…an Esper…"

"What?" Locke's face was deadpanned as he blinked several times in shock. He walked closer to her and she hesitantly looked back up to him. "An…Esper?"

"Yeah, there was some kind of a reaction with the Esper and Terra and she just took off," Celes reiterated as Locke exhaled the breath he was holding. As she continued, her voice started to become so quiet, Locke barely heard her. "Almost like a glowing light. I'll never forget the sound she made. She sounded like…she was in pain…"

"Do you know where she went?" He asked her as she shook her head. "Dammit. Well, I guess that means that we'll just have to start looking."

"Where do you suppose we start?" She lifted her hands slightly in question as Locke started to walk out into the main room, unable to figure out why he was reacting solely on impulse. "I'm worried about her as well, but it's not like we have any clue to what happened or where she's at."

"Celes, I'm not thinking clearly right now, I'm aware of that fact, but I can't just sit here and wait for her to show up." He didn't mean to snap at her, but he knew that he didn't want to fail another girl that he swore to protect. He opened the door for her and she silently walked out of the bedroom. Edgar, Sabin, Gau, and Cyan were waiting around the fire, discussing their next plan.

Edgar rushed toward Locke when he saw him, the look of relief on his face. "Locke! You're awake!"

"Yeah," Locke replied quietly with a nod.

"You okay?" By the look on Locke's face, Edgar clearly knew the answer to his own question, but he asked it anyway. "Sorry, that was a really stupid thing to ask. You kind of look like death slapped you in the face. Well, okay, maybe you look like death itself."

"Thanks for the compliment, Edgar," Locke replied sarcastically to cut Edgar off from saying anything else. "However, I have a bitch of a headache, but that's not really important at the moment." Edgar nodded in understanding.

"Something happened to Terra…" Edgar began to explain. His voice resembled Celes' when she started to explain the situation to him; soft, gentle, and trying to be as subtle as possible. _Almost as if they know that I'm not going to take the news lightly…_Locke thought as he looked at the expression on his friend's face.

"Yeah, I know. Celes was trying to fill me in with the details," Locke said as Celes gave a nod. "What exactly happened? Do we know?

"No, I'm afraid that we don't," Edgar admitted. Locke sighed and looked up at the ceiling in frustration. "There seems to be some connection between Espers and her…"

"What do you mean, 'connection?'" Locke asked as everyone looked at each other for an answer. "Ah, another question that none of us know the answer to."

"Sorry, man," Sabin apologized as Locke shrugged.

"It's no one's fault," Edgar began as Locke fixed his bandana. "Anyway, we need to find her. I'm worried about her."

"Gau worried too." Everyone looked at Gau and smiled with his concern. When the young boy realized that he had everyone's attention, he instantly blushed, turned away, then started to crawl along the floor.

"We have to find her before the Empire does," Locke informed them all as they all nodded in agreement. "Who knows what'll happen if they get their hands on her before we do. We know that magic is what the Empire is looking for, and between Celes, Terra and…"

Celes whipped her head up toward him and felt her jaw slightly drop. "And who, Locke? Finish that sentence."

"We'll talk about it later," he snapped as he looked at the ground. He wasn't ready to explain to Celes how he knew her from before, and how he also knew who Xane Riley was. With a sigh, he looked back up and continued. "Anyway, like I was saying, the Empire is looking for magic, so they'll want to find Terra the second that they find out she's missing."

"Actually," Celes piped up matter of factly. "They're already looking for her. You all have just kept her very well hidden for quite some time."

"Well, I just meant that when they find out that she's no longer with us, they'll know she's not being protected, and then they'll hike up their search," he clarified as he looked around at everyone. "Do we have any kind of lead whatsoever? Or is this going to be a walk in the dark?"

"Sabin and I walked around Narshe to see what we could find, and some witnesses saw her screaming across the sky to the west," Edgar informed everyone as Locke thought about it.

"Okay, so that means we should go to the western continent," he began, his voice slowing down as he spoke. "So, Jidoor and Zozo are the places we should check. Where should we go first?"

Celes furrowed her forehead and added, "Um, Kohlingen is there too, isn't it?" Locke was silent as she studied him. "I thought you said that was your home town. How could you forget that?"

"And Kohlingen is there too," he stated to please her. An awkward feeling rose in the air as everyone noticed that Locke was feeling quite uncomfortable. _I haven't been there since…_He thought, remembering that day. With an attempt at a smile, he looked up and winked. "Well, we're wasting time just standing around doing nothing. Let's go!"

Edgar folded his arms across his chest as he spoke. "You sure?"

"Of course," Locke replied confidently. His confidence wavered slightly as he looked down again. "I promised her I'd…"

"Locke…" Celes whispered quietly as she started to walk closer to him. He felt his heart start to sink in his chest and tried focusing on a few tiles on the floor so he wouldn't have to look up. "You don't have to do this."

"Yeah, man," Sabin said cheerfully to try to raise Locke's spirits. "I mean, Celes, Edgar, Cyan and I could go or something like that. If this is going to be too hard for you…"

"Nah, I'll be fine," Locke lied as he started to entwine the situation with Terra with what happened with _her. I promised them both I would protect them…I failed one…_

"Think, people!" Edgar started, rather harshly to get everyone's attention. Locke was still preoccupied with his own thoughts, so he didn't budge or even bother to look up. _I can't fail the other…_He continued to think as Edgar spoke. "The Empire still wants that Esper."

"And if the Esper and the girl are connected in some way, that means that we have to protect both," Cyan added with a nod.

"Banon needs our help, too…" Sabin said in Locke's direction. The guilt started to eat away at Locke, causing him to turn away from everyone else and bow his head. Although he knew that they would all understand if he stayed behind, he knew that he swore to protect Terra, and he was going to do everything he could to stay true to that promise.

Locke faced everyone again as he slowly inhaled. After holding his breath for a second, he let out the air in tiny puffs. "Okay, let's go."

"Heh, this is a situation that I thought I would never find myself in," Cyan muttered under his breath with a slight chuckle. "I never thought I would go out of my way for an Imperial soldier…but we've no choice. We must help her!"

"It's settled then," Edgar exclaimed as he clapped his hands together. "Let's split up. Those who aren't searching for Terra will stay here and guard Narshe. Figaro Castle can shuttle us to the western province."

"Oh, we're headed for Figaro?" Sabin chimed in, excitement in his voice. "Aw man, I haven't been there in ages! I'm in that group!"

"Okay, Sabin is in that group," Edgar continued, giving his Brother a playful glare for interrupting his directions. "Figaro will take us under the mountains, yadda yadda yadda. Locke, you know the drill."

"Yeah, I do," he confirmed as he looked at everyone else. "It, um, stops in the desert by Kohlingen, right?"

"Yes, it does," Edgar nodded as he put his hand on Locke's shoulder. "After it surfaces, make for Kohlingen or Jidoor. Locke, I'm going to ask this again; are you sure you're ready to go back there?"

"I'll never be ready," Locke confessed as he bowed his head again. He saw Celes give him a concerned look out of the corner of his eye, but he didn't look up at her. "I have to face it sooner or later, don't I?"

Sabin patted Locke on the back and then himself on the chest. "You'll be fine! I'll be there! I think we better take Celes along too. It never hurts to have a girl with us!" He put his arm around Celes and brought her close to him.

"The fact that I'm a former Imperial general and I might have some insight on where the army is hiding wouldn't have anything else to do with it either, would it?" She asked, shoving Sabin away from her as he nervously chuckled. "That wasn't at all obvious."

"Well, that only makes three of us," Locke noted as he looked at Edgar, Gau, and Cyan. "I think there should be four us. That way we have strength in numbers, but we're not sticking out like a bunch of sore thumbs."

"I personally would rather stay here and keep an eye on Banon," Edgar started to explain as he shook his head. "I know this place pretty well anyway. Not to mention, I know that if I go back to Figaro, something will undoubtedly come up and I'll have to stay there. I'd rather not risk that. So yeah, I want to stay here."

"Gau stay here too," Gau added as he moved closer to Edgar.

"That means I'm going with you three, then," Cyan said when he noticed that he was the only one left.

"Oh goody," Celes grumbled under her breath.

Cyan looked at her and asked, "I'm sorry, did you say something?"

"Not at all," she replied with a smug smile.

"Anyway," Edgar said loudly to interrupt them. With an annoyed sigh, he turned to and put his hand on his shoulder. "Make your way to Figaro. Tell the head engineer what's going on and he'll submerge the castle. Be careful, you hear?"

"We will be," Locke replied as he started to lead Celes, Sabin, and Cyan out of the house. "You take care of yourselves too."

"Don't worry! Things'll be fine!" Edgar stated as Locke opened up the door. "Don't forget to tell the Chancellor that I'm here."

Although Edgar was speaking to Locke, Sabin waved with his hand and said, "I'll relay the message for ya!"

"Good luck, Locke!" Locke heard the young king say as Celes shut the door behind her, cutting off Edgar's sentence.

"Whoops," she giggled and covered her mouth in embarrassment. "I think he was still talking to us."

"He'll get over it," Sabin shrugged as he feigned stretching then playfully put his arm around Celes. "So, Celes…"

"Watch it."

"My bad," Sabin said instantly as he removed his arm away from the ex-General and placed it back at his side. Locke tried to smile, but he couldn't find a reason to. "So Locke, it looks like we're both going back to our hometowns! How long has it been since you've been in Kohlingen?"

"A while," he replied simply, his voice low and reserved. He knew that the last time he went back was a few weeks before Banon sent him to Narshe to meet Terra, but he tried not to think about that day. "I'm…not looking forward to going back either."

"Why's that?" Celes asked as Locke shrugged. "Ahh, you're gonna be all cryptic now, aren't you? That's fine. Hide your secrets from us, we won't ask."

Locke shook his head as Sabin chuckled. "Very funny, Celes. We both know that you're dying to know. However, let Locke be. He might spill one of these days."

"Nice try," Locke retorted, clearly not amused as he dug his hands deeply into his pockets. He looked at the horizon to see the sun hanging low in the sky; it would be night soon. "We'll stay the night in Figaro and then head to Kohlingen in the morning."

"Aye aye," Sabin quipped with a salute. Celes playfully harrumphed and let out a breathy laugh. "What is it?"

"It's obvious that you were never in the Imperial army," she told him, as she mocked the way he saluted. "That was the worst attempt at a salute that I have ever seen in all the years I was a general, and believe me when I say I have seen some people botch it up pretty badly."

"Of course I would never be in the Imperial army," Sabin said with an insulted scoff. "No offence because you used to work for them and everything, but I prefer to have my own opinion of things and not be ordered around by an insane little man that looks like a clown."

"Gestahl gives out more of the orders than Kefka does," Celes clarified, causing both Cyan and Sabin to scoff.

"But you are aware that Kefka poisoned my people without the consent from Gestahl, no?" Cyan asked as Celes blushed slightly. "My point exactly."

"I think that Kefka just needs a great big group hug," Sabin said as he thought about it for a second. "Or maybe just something with a lot of chocolate. There's no problem that can't be solved by chocolate."

"What about obesity?" Cyan asked as Celes rolled her eyes and Sabin put his hand to his chin.

"Okay, I guess you're right, but that's the only downfall that I can think of." He chuckled about it for a second, then put his hand on his stomach. "Man, that makes me want chocolate. I'm hungry. Is anyone else as hungry as I am?"

"You are by far the most random person I have ever met," Celes informed him as she crossed her arms.

Sabin furrowed his forehead as he studied Celes to find the meaning in her statement. "Is that a good thing or a bad thing?"

"Neither really," Celes clarified with a slight shrug. "However, back on the Kefka topic, he's the one controlling the Emperor. The Emperor is actually a very good man. He's just basically playing as Kefka's puppet."

"Oh, so now you're defending the Empire?" Cyan asked as Celes scoffed. "It was just an observation of the context of your statement. Young lady, there is no reason in the world why you should defend that group of immoralists."

"I'm not defending them at all," she threw back, and put her hands on her hips. "You just don't trust me."

"And how am I suppose to trust someone who states that the Emperor is really a 'good man' when the Emperor is the one who gave you the orders to start that attack on Maranda, pray tell?" Locke saw Celes' face flare up at Cyan's statement, but decided to stay out of it.

"Excuse me?" She scoffed at the memory and clenched her fists. "That is beside the point. I was following orders."

Cyan pointed his nose in the air as he listened to her speak. "Meaning you're just as bad as the rest of them."

"Hey, you should just give the poor girl a chance," Sabin said, stepping between the two of them before they started exchanging blows. "She _is_ part of the Returners now!"

After a minute of listening to them argue, Locke turned around and blew up at them. "All right, that's enough! If I knew that I was taking you three along to bicker, I would've just gone by myself! This isn't an easy thing for me to do right now, so I would appreciate it if you would shut the hell up and let me think!"

"Don't you mean 'brood?'" Sabin questioned as he flashed Locke a large grin. By the harsh look on Locke's face, Sabin knew he said the wrong thing and wiped the smile from his face. "Sorry, we'll be good."

"Thank you," Locke snapped as he shook his head and looked toward the horizon again. _The sooner this path down memory lane is over…the more relieved I will be…_


	20. One Step Closer

**There is one reason why this chapter is in here...for the middle part. I had the idea one day in English (I wrote this chapter a long time ago as well) and then incorporated it into this part of the game. The part of the game wasn't even significant...It IS if you have Edgar and Sabin both in your party -- the Coin Toss part -- but I didn't have Edgar along with everyone for one reason...because I wanted both Cyan and Sabin with Locke and Celes. I'll explain why later...lol! Anyway...The title of this chapter is from One Step Closer by Linkin Park.**

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**20. One Step Closer**

"Oh wow!" Sabin exclaimed when the four of them were able to see Figaro Castle. A boyish grin appeared on his face and he gently grabbed Celes' arm. She gave him a queer look, so he removed his hands, but it didn't dampen his high spirits. "I'm so excited! I have no idea why, but I am!"

"It's only normal to be excited to be back at your hometown again," Celes said, gazing over at Locke to see if he caught her alternate meaning. He narrowed his eyes as he looked straight ahead, so Celes figured she got to him. "I mean, I don't know what would cause someone to hate their own hometown—"

"Okay, I get the hint," he snapped at her and gently kicked the sand with the toe of his shoe, causing a cloud of yellow dust to fly in the air. "Let's drop the 'Locke doesn't want to go home' thing for a while. I'm heading back to Kohlingen, understood? I don't have a choice. Finding Terra is more important than me reminiscing right now."

Celes sighed in defeat and the four of them remained silent until they reached the front gate of the castle. Sabin was so excited that Locke thought the man was going to jump up and down or skip to the entrance.

"Sir Sabin!" One of the guards cried out when they recognized him. "Is that really you?"

"Yes, it is!" He replied happily as he gave the guard a hearty handshake and a pat on the back. He turned back to Celes, Locke, and Cyan with a large smile on his face and inhaled then exhaled happily. "This is like old times! I have to wander around for a while!"

Without another word, Sabin rushed into the castle, causing Locke, Celes, Cyan, and the guards to chuckle in amusement. Celes tapped Locke on the shoulder, pointed in Sabin's direction, and as she opened her mouth, Locke gave her a warning glare. "Don't even think about saying it."

"I wasn't going to say anything." She smugly blinked at him and he frowned at her. To not feel his glare, she put her hands on her hips and looked around at the castle. "Oh wow, this is a nice place."

"You expected less?" Cyan asked, a smile shining brightly on his face. "Oh my, this castle reminds me so much of Doma. I do believe I need to have a look around as well."

"Me too!" Celes added as the two of them walked in separate directions, leaving Locke alone in the middle of the castle's foyer, quite dumbfounded.

"Uh, I guess I'll let the mechanic know that we need to leave?" The two of them were out of earshot, so he shrugged and walked toward the Engine Room. He pushed on the heavy door and practically stumbled into the loud room. The heavy machinery located in the room whirred from the activity of running everyday tasks of the castle, and Locke found it difficult to hear himself think.

He turned the corner to see the conductor of the controls standing by a large control panel fiddling with something. Locke cautiously made his way over there, slightly grimacing at the loud noise. He didn't know how the conductor could work in a place like this. Not wanting to frighten the man by tapping him on the shoulder, Locke cleared his throat loudly.

The man didn't hear Locke over the machines, so Locke slightly stomped his foot on the ground as he cleared his throat again. This time, the man felt the vibration from the stomp, so he whipped around quickly and put his hand over his heart. He smiled when he saw the young man and held out his hand. "Locke Cole! Well, I'll be damned!"

"Hey," Locke said as he shook hands with the older man. "How's it been?"

"Eh, same old, same old," he replied with a chuckle as he wiped his hands on his shirt. Dark stains were left on the material from his grease stained hands, but the conductor didn't seem to notice or care. "What can I do for ya?"

Locke walked toward the controls and motioned with his head. "Well, since you don't look busy, I was wondering if you want to pull this lever for me."

The man chuckled at Locke and patted him on the back. "You haven't a changed a bit, have you? Anyway, there've been lots of requests this month! If it's your wish, I'll take you beyond the mountains! Want to go to Kohlingen?"

"Want to?" Locke repeated at he bit at his lip. "I wouldn't want to call this an act of want, but yeah. Kohlingen seems to be my next destination on my itinerary, so it would be fantastic if you could get me there."

"You're not the only one who has requested to go there today! A few other people wanted to go there for some goods and whatnot. Now I'll be able to kill a few birds with one stone!" The man told him as he put his hand on the controls. Locke smiled as the man let out a loud grunt and pulled down the lever.

Locke tried to convince himself that he was prepared, but he realized that he wasn't when the floor started to shake. He grabbed onto the railing with all of his might and grimaced as the loud machinery roared through the room.

After a few minutes of rumbling and shaking, it stopped and the machinery dulled down to a gentle humming again. Locke exhaled the breath he didn't notice he was holding and released the death grip he had on the railing. As he gently flexed his fingers, he realized that Figaro had gone under the mountains and he was now a stone throw's distance away from Kohlingen.

"Next stop Kohlingen!" The conductor announced, laughing at Locke's reaction to the submerging. His face was slightly pale and he felt his legs shaking. "Watch your step!"

"Th…Thanks." When he stood up straight, he waved to the conductor and started to walk up the stairs. It was a difficult task to have his legs obey the movements of climbing steps, but he eventually made it up to the foyer. "Okay, that's twice I've done that now. I never want to do it again."

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Later that night, Locke looked around and when he realized that the three other members in his party weren't in eye sight, walked around the castle. He found the staircase that led to the look out area and decided that was exactly where he wanted to be. It was the highest point of the castle, and he knew he would be able to see for quite a distance and have some peace and quiet.

He made his way up the stairs and exhaled when he reached the top. Slowly, he walked over to the stone wall and rested his forearms on the upper left hand corner of it, looking down first. A dizzy spell swept over him as he noticed the long fall, so he decided that it would be best not to lean over as far as he was or look down again. He looked toward the northwestern part of the continent, which was the direction of Kohlingen. The hot desert air whipped his hair around in his face, but it didn't faze him or ruin his thoughts.

Many things were unclear in his mind, but he was certain that he was not looking forward to the next morning. He had not been back to his hometown in several weeks, and bowed his head at that fact. _It's been so long, Locke…why haven't you found a way to help her? She's depending on you…_

"Ah, there you are!" Locke jumped about a foot in the air at the cheery sound of Celes' voice and whipped around. He put his hand over his heart and felt his pulse racing. "Whoa, are you okay?"

"You just scared the living hell out of me," he explained as she laughed. _She looks so much like her…_He thought with a twinge of pain as he watched her eyes light up from her laughter. As much as he wanted to look away from her, he felt his eyes fixated on her own.

"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to," she apologized as she walked next to him. She rested her hip against the wall that Locke was leaning against and crossed her arms. "I was wondering where you've been hiding. I haven't seen you since dinner. Are you sure you're all right? I've been worried about you."

"Why's that?" He asked as he turned back toward Kohlingen again.

"I'm quite aware that I don't know you very well," she began as Locke sighed. She ignored his reaction and continued. "But I do believe I can tell when someone's mind is somewhere else. Although I respect your privacy, you've been quiet since we've left Narshe and it concerns me."

"Celes, for the millionth time, I appreciate your concern and all, but it's not necessary. I don't want to talk about this with you." He didn't realize the harsh and impatient tone in his voice, but he was able to see her smile fizzle away. "Please don't look at me like that."

"No, it's okay, you don't trust me. Why would you? I'm just…an ex-general." She mumbled the last bit of her sentence, ashamed that she would carry that title for the rest of her life. Locke remained silent for he wasn't sure what to say. He didn't feel inclined to argue with her for he didn't want to lie.

It was true, he didn't trust her but he didn't want to bluntly say it to her face. It wasn't a personal hit toward the fact that she used to be a general, but his life consisted of him trusting people then only getting let down. He felt that if he didn't trust anyone, he would never get hurt.

"Let's just put it this way," he began to explain as he faced her. She slowly looked up at him, hurt still evident in her eyes but she humored him by listening. "There are things in both of our pasts that we would like to forget. Unfortunately, our pasts grip our hearts and mind so tightly, making it virtually impossible to let the memories go. You cry and scream to attempt to make the pain go away, but it never will. It never will, Celes. You can't bring back those people you were ordered to kill just like I can't forget certain things that happened in my past. It's just something that we're both going to have to deal with on a day by day basis, hoping that the memory will fade one of these days."

Tears sprang up in Celes' eyes, proving to Locke that she now understood. "The memories never will fade away…" She replied quietly as she looked down at her fingers. "They'll always be there."

"Yes, they will be," Locke stated as he exhaled. "However, I want to be able to fix this wrong. I want to be able to sleep at night without nightmares of myself reliving what happened."

"If you told me what is going on, I might be able to help you," Celes protested as Locke shook his head vehemently. "If you're not going to tell me, you can't mope. At least pretend to be in a good mood so I won't have to worry!"

"I don't want to talk about it with you," he said harshly. "I don't care if you get pissed at me, but I refuse to let you know what happened. I don't like to talk about it. Don't you have things that you don't want to talk about?"

"Yes, I do," she admitted as Locke studied her. The look of pain was clear on her face, and although he didn't want her to relive her memories, he was glad that she could remotely feel what he was going through. "Just like what happened in Maranda. I don't like that being brought up, and you just had to mention it."

With a sigh, Locke looked away from her. He knew it was a low blow by him bringing that up, but he still didn't feel remorse. She started to dig the toe of her shoe into the stone floor and kick at the grout that held the building together. Without even looking up at her, he continued to look toward Kohlingen. "Now you know how the past feels? This is what I'm going through right now. I've been going through this for the few weeks and bringing it up makes the pain become five times worse. Like I said before, these things happen and we can't change the past. We just…can't. Therefore, I would appreciate it if you would leave me alone and let me dwell on what happened and wish things didn't end up the way they did."

"Okay, fine, I understand," she said quietly as she looked down at her heels. After a second she started to walk toward the staircase, her heels clicking slightly louder than usual on the floor. "I can see that you're not going to change your mind, so I won't bother you about it anymore."

Locke heard her footsteps stop, as if she was waiting for an apology or him to say something, but he kept his lips firmly pressed together. After a few seconds of tapping her shoe against the stone floor, she let out a sigh, reached the stairs, and slowly walked to the lower level.

Although he didn't intend to make the impact of his statement so harsh, he was glad to be alone with the night air again. Talking about how he didn't want to talk about the situation only made him think more about it, so he clenched his hands into fists. Before he was able to do anything else, his moment of solitude was interrupted when he heard footsteps thumping up the stairs.

"Wow, I have no idea what you said, but I just walked past a girl who's almost upset enough to cry in my arms," Sabin quipped with a laugh as he walked toward Locke. "Keep up the angst attitude and I might just get lucky."

"I love how I come up here to be alone and I'm constantly interrupted," Locke informed Sabin with a grim look on his face. Sabin didn't catch onto Locke's sarcasm and leaned against the wall next to him.

"What can I say?" He started as he patted Locke on the back. "I saw a beautiful girl walk down the stairs who was pretty damn upset and I had to see what the cause of it was."

"It is definitely obvious that you and Edgar are related," Locke stated, causing Sabin to laugh some more.

"I still think that Edgar should make this castle run by all women. Whoo! Can you imagine the uniforms? I'm thinking a nice purple leotard with stilettos." Locke attempted a half smile as a dreamy look took over Sabin. "Oh, hell yeah, that would be amazing. I would definitely move back here."

"And make Celes your personal valet?" Locke asked as Sabin put his hand to his chin and tapped his upper lip with his index finger.

"I like the way you think," he said with a nod. "I think I should suggest that to Edgar. Do you think he'll go for it? I think he will."

"Just ask her to dinner or something," Locke suggested, thankful that Sabin was keeping his mind off of his past for a few moments.

"I would love to, but frankly, she's quite intimidating," Sabin explained as he let out a dramatic exhale. "I'd be afraid that she would kick my ass. She's a gorgeous girl though. And actually, I _do_ love a girl who can kick my ass."

"Good luck," Locke said, avoiding a comment on her beauty. "I think you would have more of a chance with that sand dune over there."

Sabin looked at where Locke pointed and frowned. "Nah, not my type. Not lively enough." Locke rolled his eyes and let out a chuckle at Sabin's cheery demeanor. He knew that Sabin didn't have a perfect past either, yet he was able to keep his memories out of the way he acted. _Why can't I do that…_Locke thought to himself as he rubbed his fingers together. "See, here's the thing I don't understand about you, Locke."

"What's that?"

"Well, okay, when we left Mt. Kolts, you were in a good mood, ya know? You were joking around with Edgar, Terra, and I, and you seemed pretty upbeat," he began to explain as Locke shrugged. "So, now here you are; gloomy and thinking. I think I know what it is, but I don't want to open my mouth."

"I told you, Sabin," Locke began with a sigh. "I'm not looking forward to going back to Kohlingen. There're a lot of memories left there that I would rather not revisit."

"No, that's not what it is," he stated, causing Locke to look at him in question. Sabin studied him for a second then nodded his head. "Mm-hmm. Yep. I knew it. You like Terra."

Locke had to let out a laugh at Sabin's accusation. "What in the hell are you talking about?"

"I'm serious. You like her, don't you?" Sabin thought about her for a second then smiled. "She's gorgeous and she has power. Those are two very attractive attributes in a woman."

"Sabin…" Locke said with a warning tone in his voice. "She's a very nice girl, but I really am not looking for anyone at the moment. For the millionth time, I'm just trying to find her because I promised that I would protect her and watch over her until she got her memory back."

"I see, I see," Sabin said as he gently nudged Locke in the ribs with his elbow. "Protecting her, eh? That's just the knight in shining armor's subtle way of saying 'I want you!'"

"By the way Terra and I joke around with each other is more brother and sisterly than relationship like. But, think whatever you want to think," Locke replied with an entertained exhale, not wanting to argue with him even though he was wrong.

Sabin laughed as he took a step toward the stairs. "Look, why don't you come back inside? It's getting late."

"Yeah, that sounds like a damn good idea," Locke stated as he stood up and ran his fingers through his wind blown hair. "I could use some sleep before the day that we're going to have tomorrow. Now that I think about it, between going back to Kohlingen and worrying about Terra, I'm not so sure how much sleep I'm going to be getting."

"I think I just found your main problem; you worry too much," Sabin informed him as they approached the stairs. "Loosen up, yeah? There's nothing you can do about the past. It hurts, yeah, but the past is the past. And as for Terra? We're all worried about her but we'll find her. That's why we're going this way."

"Thanks, Sabin," Locke replied sincerely as he looked over his shoulder for one last glance at Kohlingen. "I know you're just trying to help, but I can't forget the past. No one can."

"You're impossible," he said with a slight chuckle. "Just get some rest tonight then, all right? Stop being so bone headed."

"Heh, thanks," Locke repeated as he and Sabin made their way down the stairs. They stopped when they arrived at the room that they would be staying in, but Sabin explained that he wasn't done looking around the castle. Locke waved him off then decided that it would be the best idea to try to get some sleep.


	21. Place of Memory

**I love the way this chapter turned out...the ending of it seriously almost creeps me out every time I read it. As weird as it sounds, I feel like I've gotten to know Locke's character so much more in depth by writing an entire fic by him that I can 'feel' what he was going through...sounds creepy, I know, but it's true. The title is from a piece from Final Fantasy IX, but it works SO well with what goes on in this chapter. The funny thing about this chapter is that the beginning of it wasn't going to be connected to the ending. I originally had the ideas in two separate chapters, but then I realized that they could be in the same one as long as I made a decent and believable transition. I think it worked out rather well if I do say so myself. Oh yeah, more stuff is explained in this chapter...so yay. **

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**21. Place of Memory**

_Locke blinked his eyes open as he heard the gentle chirping of birds from outside of his window. He looked around and saw that he was back in his room at the Quantz hideout and let out a smile of happiness. He put his hands behind the back of his head and inhaled the fresh spring air that was coming in through the open window. The room was just the way he remembered it; wooden floors, the tiny bookshelf on one of the walls, the mirror next to the dresser, the tiny bed that he was lying in, and the feeling that he was home._

'_I'm back,' he thought to himself as he sat up and hung his legs over the side of the bed and let them touch the ground. He drummed his toes against the wood, feeling the course wood gently tickle them. He chuckled at himself then rested back down on his bed to look at the ceiling. With a gentle inhale, he heard the doorknob slowly turn. Sitting up once again, he looked at the door and saw it start to open and reveal the person who opened it. _

"_Rachel…" He exhaled as he saw the beautiful girl standing in the doorway. She was wearing an elegant white satin dress, white heels, and her hair fell down to the middle of her back. The necklace that she was wearing had a beautiful diamond hanging from the center; the Clemix Diamond. The purity of the green stone was so astounding that Locke thought he was going to be blinded every time it caught the light._

_Looking up from the diamond, Locke saw that the smile on Rachel's face was even brighter. Her eyes sparkled in gaiety and her cheeks were a rosy pink from excitement; both features making Locke's heart flutter. For the first time in a long time, he felt happiness take over his body and soul. He started to get out of bed, but she held up her hand to stop him. _

"_Don't get up," she said in her gentle voice as she started to walk closer to the bed. She was walking so smoothly that it looked as though she was floating above the wooden floor as she made her way over to him. He couldn't take his eyes off her. _

"_Oh Rachel, I've missed you so much. I…failed you, I know, I'm so sorry…" He bowed his head in shame, but she put her finger over his lips to shush him. _

"_Shh, there's no need for that," she stated soothingly. Her gentle smile turned seductive as she put the hand that wasn't on his lips against his chest and pushed him backward onto his bed so he was flat on his back. Without saying a word, Locke watched as she giggled, then crawled in his bed and straddled his torso. Removing her hand from his lips, she placed it on the side of his face and left her other hand on his chest. Maintaining her smile, she gently pressed her lips against his in a loving kiss. "I'm here now, that's all that matters."_

"_Stay with me forever," he stated as she nodded in confirmation. Holding back tears, he brushed a tendril of hair out of her face and tucked it behind her ear as she stroked his cheek with her fingertips. He trailed his hand down the side of her face and cupped her chin and stared deeply into her eyes. She blushed from his gaze, but leaned over and kissed him once again. _

_He put his hands on the back of her neck to bring her closer to him, never wanting to let go. As she ran her fingers through his hair, he could feel the gold engagement band touching his skin, sending shivers up his spine. She giggled softly every time their lips met, causing Locke to exhale, almost as a silent moan. _

_In the middle of a passionate kiss, she gasped sharply in pain and backed away from him. He could feel something warm dripping against his stomach and instantly he looked at the source. Something had impaled Rachel through the stomach, and she was now bleeding profusely all over him. _

"_Rachel!" He cried as he held her in his arms, hoping his touch would have enough healing power in it to save her. Blood was dripping everywhere and Locke tried to find the cause of the wound, but nothing was there. It was as if the air itself had stabbed her, leaving no evidence behind. Tears started to stream down his face as he stroked her hair with one hand and held her up with the other. "I failed you again…Oh, Rachel…"_

"_Open your eyes," she whispered weakly as he looked at her in confusion. _

"_I'm already awake," he informed her, kissing her gently on the lips._

"_Wake up, Locke." Her voice was labored and her body convulsed as she let out a sickening cough. Somehow she managed to muster up enough strength to continue and say; "Come on, wake up." _

"Rachel…" Locke whispered, slowly fluttering his eyes open and his vision of Rachel started to fade away. "Don't leave me…"

"Locke! Wake up!"

Locke felt someone shaking his shoulders and he realized that the voice was no longer Rachel's, although it was coming out of her dissolving body. Locke's eyes flew open and saw Celes standing over him with her hands on his shoulders, trying to wake him up. He let out a yelp when he saw her and he tried to jump out of bed. Instead, his legs were tangled in the sheets, so he fell out of the bed and onto the floor in an ungraceful heap.

"Celes!" He cried when he stumbled to get back to his feet, his voice cracking in shock. She laughed at him and he dusted himself off with his hands in embarrassment. He avoided eye contact with her as he concentrated on picking up the sheets that were on the floor and put them back on the bed.

"Nice dream?" She asked him, still in hysterics. He slightly blushed and shook his head as he ran his fingers along the sheets.

"I wouldn't exactly call it a 'dream,'" he explained as he pretended to rub the sleep out of his eyes, but really was checking to see if he was not only crying in the dream, but in real life as well. Fortunately, his eyes were dry, so he wouldn't have to explain it to Celes. She raised an eyebrow at him but sighed when he sat down on the bed and slightly groaned. He could feel his heart beating rapidly from a combination of the nightmare and Celes waking him up, so he tried slowly breathing to calm it down. "I'm sorry, Celes. Did I wake you?"

"Yeah, you were screaming about something and it interrupted my beauty sleep," she explained playfully as she put her hands on her hips. "No, I'm just kidding. I was up already. I just came in here to wake you up and then you start calling me Rachel. Who's Rachel?"

"Celes, remember when we had that wonderful talk yesterday about how I don't like to talk about my past?" She nodded and he reached over and grabbed his boots that he placed next to the headboard of the bed the previous night. He continued as he started to put on the shoes. "That's my past. Therefore, I don't want to talk about it. I was just having a dream. Actually, one might call it a nightmare."

"Are you going to be okay?" She asked him as he slowly nodded. "I swear, I think that's about the twentieth time I've asked you that question in the last day and a half. I might as well stop asking you it because you keep giving me the same answer. 'I'm fine.'" She laughed as she mocked him and pretended to fix the invisible bandana around her head at the same time.

"I _am_ fine," he replied as he noticed how his own hands were retying his bandana. She laughed harder and he gently pushed her. "Don't make fun of me! It's a habit from wearing a bandana nonstop the last few years."

"That was just too perfect," she explained as he finished tying his shoe. "You seriously fix that thing more than any girl fixes her hair, so I had to make fun of you for it sooner or later."

"Yeah, yeah," he said with a smile and gave her another gentle push. "So, I take it you woke me up so we could leave?"

"Yeah, it's about time we left, dreamer boy," she said as she pointed to the window. The morning sun was streaming in through the glass and lit up the entire room. "Look at the time, it's late already."

With a yawn, he stood up and stretched. "Sorry, I was tired I guess. I honestly didn't think that I was going to be able to sleep."

Ignoring his ramblings, Celes led him out to the foyer of the castle. "Hmm, I wonder where Sabin and Cyan are. I saw Sabin earlier this morning talking to the Chancellor so I'm assuming he's around here somewhere and Cyan went to find him. I don't think it would be a good idea if we left both of them here."

"I'm imagining that they wouldn't be too happy," Locke replied as he fixed his bed hair. Celes looked at him with a smirk on his face, so he chuckled at her. "What is it? I'm fixing my hair, not my bandana!"

"No, it's not that. It's just that I think you are seriously bi-polar," she stated, shaking her head and resting her hands on her hips. She was clearly amused and started to circle him as she inspected him.

"What are you doing?" He asked as he watched her go around him. He started to go in the same direction that she was, but stopped and put his hand on his forehead. "It's way too early for these kinds of games. You're making me dizzy."

"I'm just saying that yesterday you were cranky and now you seem to be in a pretty good mood," she explained as she stopped behind him. He slowly turned toward her and raised an eyebrow. "Are you sure that you had a nightmare?"

"I'm positive." He let out a huff and sighed as a shiver ran up his spine from the thought of the blood. "That's just the way I am. I have my secrets, that's all. I thought that everyone had secrets, so I didn't think it was a crime."

Before Celes was able to respond, Cyan, Sabin and the Chancellor opened the door and began to walk toward her and Locke. They were still talking amongst themselves and neither Celes nor Locke wanted to speak to interrupt them, so they listened to the conversation the three of them were having.

"We must be going," Cyan said politely to the Chancellor, giving a small bow with his head in respect. From the tone of voice he used, Locke could tell that he must've said that about six times already. "Thank you very much for your hospitality."

"Of course!" The Chancellor replied as Cyan walked over to Locke and Celes. Cyan motioned with his eyes to start to leave, but they noticed that Sabin wasn't with them; he was still talking to the Chancellor.

"Sabin, we're going out the door!" Celes announced in a sing song voice as Sabin quickly faced them all. Celes faced Locke and Cyan and said quietly, "It's like having a five-year-old!" Cyan and Locke chuckled as they looked over at Sabin to see the chocobo in airship headlights look in his eyes.

"Hey! Wait!" He cried out as he gave the Chancellor a quick handshake and another goodbye then ran over to the three of them. "Very funny, you guys! You know I'm going too!"

Celes gave him a pat on the arm and Cyan chuckled. "Of course we knew that!" Celes said as the guards shut the doors behind them. "Sometimes you just need a little coaxing, that's all."

"Ha ha," he retorted, although he was clearly entertained. To change the subject, he clapped his hands then rubbed them together in excitement. "Okay, does anyone know how far it is to Kohlingen?"

"About an hour walk," Locke replied as he pointed toward the horizon. "Well, that is; an hour walk with the speed that I usually walk at. If we keep going at the pace that we're going now, it's going to take us three days to get out of the desert."

Celes harrumphed and pointed to her shoes. "I would like to see you walk through sand in these."

"I'd rather not," Locke replied as he looked at his own boots. "I happen to like my shoes. High heels and I don't mix."

"Sir Locke, we shall pick up the pace then," Cyan stated as they all started to walk at a quicker pace toward the small town of Kohlingen.

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"You seem to be doing all right," Celes said as she noticed Locke's confident stride as they walked into Kohlingen. Instead of replying to her, he gave her a short nod. Although he looked secure, he had never felt more apprehensive in his entire life. "Where do you suppose we should go to start asking people if they've seen Terra?"

"This way," Locke replied, heading north. "This way we can ask people along the path to the item shop. Now that I think about it, the weapon and armor shop are right there as well, so we can see if they have anything worth looking at." As they walked along the side of the inn toward the item shop, Locke kept gazing toward the western side of town then quickly looking away. He repeated this several times, and after about the fourth time, Celes grabbed him by the arm and stopped him in his tracks. "What is it?"

"What's over there?" She asked as she started to walk past the item shop to feed her curiosity. Instead of stopping her, Locke started to follow her, feeling his heart race.

"Oh, nothing. I thought I saw a bird or something so I was just looking over there," he fibbed as she stopped walking when she saw the burned down house next to inn.

"My goddesses," she exhaled as she looked at it. She cautiously walked closer to it, almost as if she was afraid that something was going to leap out of the ruins and attack her. "What the hell happened here?"

"This house burned down about three weeks ago, Celes, by the wonderful people you used to work for," he informed her sarcastically as the memory swept through his mind. "Thankfully, no one was hurt. Well, no one from that house was hurt, anyway. Everyone escaped in time."

She gave him a queer look and he turned toward the item shop and away from the western side of town. Sabin and Cyan started to follow Locke, but Celes couldn't take her eyes off the house. "Are you sure? How do you know that?"

"I was here when it happened," he replied simply with a shrug, not wanting to go further into detail if he didn't have to. After a few minutes of Celes observing the house some more, she shook her head in shame and started to walk closer to the three men.

"Locke Cole?" Locke whipped his head in the direction where he heard his name called out from and saw an elderly lady walk over to him. He recognized her, but he couldn't put a name to a face. "Hey, 'zat you, Locke?"

"Yeah, it's me," he replied politely with a nod of his head. He searched his brain to see if he could remember who the lady was, but for the life of him, he couldn't. She reached out her arms for a hug, so Locke put his arms around her and squeezed gently. "How have you been?"

"Eh, I guess I can't complain. We're finally starting to get this town back on its feet," she replied with an optimistic smile. She saw Locke's face slightly fall with the memory, so she motioned to the east with her hand. "Have you stopped to see Rachel?"

Celes turned her head toward Locke in suspicion and narrowed her eyes at him. "Rachel? The girl in the dream?"

Ignoring Celes, he turned to the elderly lady and shook his head. "No, I haven't. I will while I'm here though. That is, if I get the courage to do so."

"You probably should. You know she would want you to." Locke bowed his head in agreement, although he didn't want to agree. She gently pinched his cheek and smiled at him. "Well, I've got to get going now," she replied as she brought Locke into a hug. He smiled as he wrapped his arms around her. Even though he couldn't remember her name or how she knew him, the consolation was a nice feeling. "You take care, you hear?"

"You as well, ma'am," he said with a slight smile as he watched her walk away. He felt Celes put her hand on his arm and he shook it off. "Okay, she's right. I need do this."

"You didn't answer my question," she said as Locke turned on his heel to walk toward the house to the north of the burned down one. Once again he ignored her as his pace gradually slowed down as he approached the door. "And, also, you need to do what?"

Sabin, Celes, and Cyan waited as Locke poised his hand about an inch from the doorknob. A few times he tried to put his hand on the knob, but would retract his hand as if the handle was too hot to be touched.

"Are you going to go in or not?" Sabin asked, raising an eyebrow. Locke knew that Sabin wasn't aware of what the situation was, but by his own actions, he could tell that Sabin had a clue that something was bothering him. Locke nodded as he placed his hand on the knob and held it there. "It's not going to open by itself you know. It usually helps if you turn your hand."

"Shouldn't you knock?" Cyan asked, staying polite as usual. "I'm sure the residents of the house wouldn't appreciate you inviting yourself in."

Before Locke was able to explain, a young woman walked up to them and began to speak. "Oh, you won't have to worry about that."

"Come again?" Cyan asked as the young woman smiled and curtsied in greeting.

"A girl named Rachel and her father used to live in that house, but after the attack…" she began to explain and trailed off with the memory. Locke took his hand off the doorknob and bowed his head as it ran through his mind. He could feel a lump rising in his throat and it took everything in his power to refrain from crying. "Well, anyway, now it's deserted. You can go in if you'd like."

"Thank you," Locke replied in a very quiet voice. The young woman nodded and continued to walk toward the southern part of town. With a heavy heart, he found the courage to put his hand on the doorknob and twist it.

As slowly as possible, he opened the door and took a small step in. The lights were out, so he could barely see anything in the dark house. Sabin flicked on the lights, causing Locke to jump in surprise. He glared at Sabin, who shrugged in apology. Locke took a few steps forward as he looked around, the three others staying close to the door. Everything was the same as he remembered it, and the sight gripped Locke's heart tightly.

"Locke?" Celes asked as he bowed his head and looked at his feet. A small dark trail caught his attention on the ground, and he again felt the panic that he felt several weeks ago. To the clueless eye, it could look like a trail of mud or dirt. However, to someone who was there when it was happened, they would clearly know that it was a trail of blood.

He went down on one knee and gently touched the ground where the stains were. The wood absorbed the liquid long ago, but the memory was still fresh in Locke's mind. Standing up again, he closed his eyes to prevent the tears from falling. Without facing the others, he whispered in an almost inaudible whisper, "…wasn't able to…save her when she needed me…"

As the others watched on, Locke relived the tragic memory in his mind.


	22. The Bridge

**:Exhale: Okay, this chapter was extremely hard to write and it took me a very long time. Well...okay, let me rephrase; It only took me like one night to write the basic idea for it, but I avoided it for a while because ever since I was nine years old (that's how old I was when this game came out in '94) I bawled my eyes out at this part of the game. I don't know...I have just always been such a huge Locke Cole fan that I felt terrible for him...his past is just so sad. However, I really do love this chapter...Rachel is just so damn cute and perky. To be honest, her personality is completely different now that I originally planned….thank god. She was turning out to be such a priss and it aggravated me. Therefore, she's more human now! YAY! Anyway, enough about her…(lol), This was also hard to write because I wanted to capture the moment the best that I could...and I think I succeeded. I hope! I'll let you be the judge of that...**

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**22. The Bridge**

Locke was waiting at the door of Vaughn's office, waiting to be summoned in. Vaughn told him to meet him at exactly noon and it was now about quarter after. He tapped his shoe with impatience for he didn't want Rachel to start worrying why he was gone for so long. He told Rachel to stay in his room so she wouldn't have gotten any unnecessary looks from other members of Quantz as they walked by. Although she protested, she agreed that it would be the best idea.

With a sigh, he looked at his watch again. It was approximately a minute and a half after the last time he checked it and he was starting to grow curious of what the meeting inside was about. It was an immediate meeting that Vaughn wished to have with Xane. Usually when Vaughn calls in someone, the meeting lasts about ten minutes or less for Vaughn wasn't one to chat. They had been in there for almost two hours. Locke figured that if they wanted him to know what the meeting was about, he would've been in the room as well. As interested as he was, he knew that it was better for him to stay out of it.

After rocking on the balls of his feet for a few seconds, the doorknob finally turned and the door opened. Xane walked out of the room with an unexplainable look on his face, and Locke wasn't sure what it meant. Xane looked at Locke silently and placed his hand on his shoulder.

"What is it?" Locke asked as Xane shook his head and started to walk away without answering. "Xane?"

He was just about ready to go after his friend to see what was wrong, but the door opened again and Vaughn popped his head out. "Come on in, Locke."

Locke followed Xane with his eyes briefly, then shook his head and walked into Vaughn's office. There was a different feeling in the air than there usually was; not to mention that Vaughn's desk was an absolute mess. The man was usually very organized, so to see the papers strewn all over his desk was very out of character. Nonchalantly, Vaughn walked to his desk and started to pick everything up, no doubt in result of Locke's queer look.

"Is everything all right?" He asked as Vaughn nodded his head. Locke narrowed his eyes as the older man carelessly threw the papers in a pile and shoved them in his desk. "O…kay."

"Anyway," Vaughn said with a nice smile as he sat in his leather chair and folded his hands on his desk. "Ah yes, you are here because I told you that I had a job for you, correct?"

"Yep," Locke replied, keeping the fact that Rachel was in his room a secret. He knew the rules that Vaughn strictly enforced, and he wasn't sure what would happen if Vaughn found out. "Is it something that can be done in one day? I've been kind of anxious lately, so I would like to get out and get my…feet…wet…"

Vaughn looked pensive for a moment as he looked down at the floor. Locke was distracted by how his boss wasn't looking at him, so he slowed down his sentence and tried to pay attention to what Vaughn was adverting his attention to. With a slight frown, he bent over and picked up a piece of paper; assumedly another letter. Locke furrowed his forehead as Vaughn turned the paper over in his hands.

_What the hell is going on? _Locke thought to himself as he saw Vaughn's lips move slightly as he skimmed the writing. With a slight chuckle, Vaughn folded the paper into fourths and put it in his desk. As he looked up at Locke again, he noticed the puzzled look on his young employee's face.

"What is it?" He asked as Locke shook his head, exhaled, and shrugged. "Ah, I see. All right then, if you don't want to tell me what's bothering you, I'll get to the point."

"Thank you," Locke replied in a sarcastic manner. What he said to Vaughn was correct; he was very anxious. However, he was more anxious to take Rachel on one hunt than never take her out again. Treasure hunting was a very dangerous field of work, and he knew Rachel didn't know or see that.

"All right, it's kind of a long explanation, but just hear me out," he started as Locke nodded in agreement. "There's a hidden cave on the eastern side of the continent that supposedly has an entire cavern full of riches. The entrance to the cave is by the ocean, but it's still reachable by foot, so you won't need a ship or anything to that nature. Sounds easy right?" Locke nodded. "Well, it's not. Obviously if the entrance was noticeable, the cave would've been raided a very long time ago. It's hidden very well."

"That's not a problem, I'm used to finding entrances. It takes out half the fun if the entrance pops right out at you," Locke stated as he leaned back in his chair. "What's in this cave that makes it so great anyway? What kind of riches are we talking?"

"We're talking about a world renowned pirate who hoarded all his gold that he had ever stolen and found in this cave," Vaughn stated as he reached across his desk for the inkwell that was sitting on several sheets of blank paper. He picked it up as he spoke and slightly frowned when he looked in it. "It's one of those things where I'm not sure if you'll be able to take all the gold and bring it back here by yourself in one trip."

_Uh oh…_Locke thought as he chewed the inside of his cheek with his back teeth. "Is this going to be a mission where I have to go with Xane or someone else? I mean, I don't have a problem with it, but I'm just curious."

Vaughn dug through the upper right hand corner desk drawer until he pulled out a small bottle filled with more ink. He held it up to the light with one hand and flicked the jar gently with his other hand. "No, I think you can go by yourself," he replied as he pulled the cork lid off of the glass jar with a slight grunt. Locke watched as he poured some ink into the tiny well with great concentration so he wouldn't spill any. "Take what you can then come back here and report your findings. If there is too much for you to take, I'll send you and Xane back another time. Possibly tomorrow or something like that. What do you think?"

"That works for me," Locke said with a nod. Vaughn put the cork back on the bottle and picked up his pen again. He stood up and stretched before heading toward the door. "Okay, I'll be back later then."

"Bye," he replied plainly without looking as he started to compose a letter. "Good luck."

"Thanks." As Locke approached the door, his curiosity got the best out of him and he turned toward Vaughn. "This is going to bother me if I don't ask. What's been going on between you and Xane lately? You've been having multi-hour meetings at odd times of the day and he never looks happy when he leaves your office, you've been writing more and more letters, and not to mention receiving a letter every day from the same place. I know there isn't ever a return address on the envelope, but the handwriting is always the same."

Without moving his pen from the writing position, Vaughn looked up at Locke with a sharp look in his eyes and his lips curled into a frown. "Locke, if I wanted you to know, I would give you all the details. You know better than to horn in on my business that I have with Xane or any other employee."

"I know," he said with a shrug as he turned toward the door again. "I was just concerned and wanted to make sure that everything was all right. Can you at least tell me that?"

"Everything is fine, thank you," Vaughn replied, an obvious edge in his voice as he let out an annoyed sigh. "Go on your hunt. I'm expecting a report back from you before the day is through."

"Can do," Locke called out over his shoulder as he opened the door and stepped out. He shook his head and sighed before he made his way to his room.

He quietly opened the door to see Rachel peacefully sleeping on his bed. She was lying on her side cuddling with the blankets with one hand and had the other hand under the pillow. A smile crept on his lips as he shut the door and walked over to her. Upon reaching the bed, he knelt down so he could look directly at her pretty face. Her lips were parted the tiniest bit as she breathed and she tightened her grip on the blankets.

He lifted up his left hand to gently stroke her cheek as he brushed her lips with his own. A smile appeared on her face from his touch, and he wasn't sure if she woke up, or if that was her reaction from a dream state. A chuckle escaped from his lips as he kissed her again, curious to how she would respond a second time.

"Oh, Xane," she exhaled dreamily, trying to hold in her giggles. Locke's eyes went wide for a second, then she started to shake from laughter.

"'Oh, Xane,' huh?" He asked as he gave her a playful shove. She opened her eyes and kissed him passionately, putting her hands behind his head to bring him closer.

"I'm just joking!" She exclaimed as she sat up in his bed. "I heard you come in and I had to see if I could confuse you. Besides, you're the one who gave the 'my other girlfriends' crack yesterday just a few hours after you proposed."

"Oh, I did, didn't I?" He said with a chuckle as he thought about it. "Okay, I guess I deserve you giving me a hard time every once and a while. You just can't be so damn cute about it."

She placed her hand on her chest and straightened her posture. "I can't help it, it just happens so naturally."

Locke wrapped his arms around her and kissed her temple. "Yeah, yeah, yeah. So, I got my orders from Vaughn. Are you ready to go?"

"I was born ready!" She started to bounce her legs on the floor in excitement and tightly hugged Locke around his chest. "Can we go now? Can we, can we, can we?"

"You are like a five year old girl on a chocobo petting farm!" Her excitement level reminded him of himself every time that he went on a hunt. Even though he didn't bounce in the manner than she did, he still felt the thrill of going out into an uncharted territory to find treasures. It was an extraordinary feeling and he prayed that it would never go away.

"I can't help it!" She said as she jumped out of his bed and ran over to her shoes. She plopped herself on the floor to put on the sandals that she was wearing earlier. Once they were put on, she spread her legs out in front of her and wiggled her toes. "I'm glad I decided to wear these and not heels."

He chuckled as he walked over to her and extended his hand to help her to her feet. He pulled her up and she placed her hands on his chest as he placed his on her waist. "I'm glad too. You definitely would not have walked through a cave wearing heels. You wouldn't want to break your pretty little ankles."

"Okay, enough talk," she decided as she rushed to the door. "Let's go!"

"Whoa, hold it," he said as he tenderly grabbed her by the shoulder to stop her. "You don't want to just waltz right out there without making sure that no one's in the hallway first. I don't want to get into trouble for having a beautiful girl in my bedroom all night. It might make the other guys jealous that you're mine."

"Aww, you're sweet," she exhaled as she turned and kissed him on the lips. As he looked at her in the eyes, he saw them sparkle with excitement. "Check out in the hallway so we can go! I'm getting restless here!"

Shaking his head in amusement, he poked his head out to look out into the hallway. Rachel had her hands on his back and he could feel her bouncing on her toes as she impatiently waited for him to give her the status of the hallway. To torture her, he slowly looked around and hummed quietly to see how patient she really was.

"Locke!" She whined from behind him and gently hit him on the back. "Stop fooling around! Don't do this to me! It safe to go now?"

"The coast is clear," he replied with a stately nod and reached for her hand. With a girlish smile, she placed her hand in his and carefully made their way out of the hideout and warped to the outside.

"Whoo!" She squealed as she handed the warp stone back to Locke. "That was awesome!"

"We haven't even done anything yet," he clarified as she skipped in front of him. He watched her bounce around for a second then had to put his hand to his forehead. "Oh man, are you going to be like this the entire walk? You're going to wear me out just by watching you."

"Don't be a spoilsport!" She grabbed him by the wrist and started to pull him so he would get going. "Now, tell me where this 'great treasure' is! I want to find it!"

"First of all, you're trying to lead me the wrong way," he informed her as he pointed to the correct direction. "Now, we're going to go that-a-way and then turn a little bit so we're walking by the coast line. Got it?"

"Got it!" She broke out into a run, leaving Locke behind. "I'll race ya to the coastline!"

"Rachel!" He yelled to her, but it was no use; she was way ahead of him. Rolling his eyes in amusement, he ran to catch up with her. Fortunately, his legs were longer than hers and he was able to meet up with her, pick her up, and spin her around before she knew what had happened. "Ha ha!"

"That's so not fair!" Locke kissed her on the side of her head as he put back down on the ground. "Now you're going to make me walk, aren't you?"

"We're halfway there already thanks to your initiative to run, so walking won't kill us," he explained, lightly panting from being out breath. "Besides, I can't keep a close eye on you if you get that far ahead of me."

She shook her foot to rid it of the grass and dirt that accumulated in her toes from running as she walked besides Locke in the right direction. "Oh, you worry too much!" Her eyes sparkled as she laughed, causing Locke to smile. "If you keep thinking so pessimistically, something bad _will _happen. So if you lighten up just a little bit, everything will be fine."

"Are you calling me uptight?" He asked as she innocently shrugged. "Would you rather me not worry about you? What kind of boyfriend would that make me? I think it's in the boyfriend handbook where I have to look after you."

"Handbook?" She perked her head up and scrunched her nose. "Why didn't I get a copy of this said handbook? I want a handbook. That way if you make any mistakes, I can call you on them and have the handbook as my guide."

"You're so giddy right now and it's hilarious," he pointed out as she flashed him a huge smile. "I hope you know you're getting all excited for nothing. Treasure hunting isn't all you're thinking it is. I never get this excited for a hunt."

"If you don't love it, then why do you do it?"

He thought about her question for a second, then chuckled. "It's not that I don't love it, I'm just saying that you can't have the expectations of always having a successful hunt. You're not always that lucky."

"You have me as a luck source this time. I'm like, your good luck charm in girl form," she said as she squeezed his hand as they reached the shoreline. She scanned the perimeter of the beach looking for the cave, but unfortunately didn't see anything. "Okay, here's the shoreline. Whoo hoo! Now, where's that cave entrance?"

Locke narrowed his eyes as he looked along the mountains and slightly frowned. "Well, it's not an obvious spot. Vaughn did tell me that it was hidden quite well. It's a pirate cave, so obviously it's going to be hard to find."

"Pirates?" She asked, a trace of fright in her voice as she swallowed. "Um, you didn't say anything about pirates. Not that pirates would frighten me or anything, but that was a obstacle I wasn't aware of."

"I don't think we'll run into anything," he stated with a shrug, unsure of how true his sentence was. _Vaughn never did tell me if the cave was abandoned or not…_He exhaled as he and Rachel walked along the wall. _Why do I feel like I'm leading her into a trap? _

She watched as he trailed his hand along the mountain wall, so she did the same. "You're very quiet," she observed as he nodded his head.

"I'm thinking," he replied as he felt an odd crack in the mountainside. To check it out further, he abruptly stopped, resulting in Rachel plowing into him.

"Ow!" She cried as she rubbed her forehead and giggled. "Can you give me some kind of signal the next time you want to do that?"

Instead of responding to her, he felt along the wall for a clue to a hidden door. After a minute of running his hands up and down the wall, he couldn't find anything. "Hmm," he mumbled as he knocked on the mountainside. He nodded with the sound it made. "Well, the good news is that it's hollow. I think I found our cave."

"Yay!" She started to bounce on her toes again. "But, how do we get inside? There isn't a door."

"I think the pirates were just as creative as the first creator of the Quantz hideout," he observed as he pulled out the warp stones. "I think these are going to be the only ticket in there."

"Okay, let's go then!" Before Locke could stop her, she held up her warp stone and warped into the mountain. Without hesitation, he held up his warp stone and followed her. He didn't want her out of his sight for longer than that brief moment.

Once inside, Locke looked around. There were several holes in the top of the mountain that streamed enough light through to see the surroundings around him. He tried not to show it to get Rachel more worked up than she already was, but he could feel the excitement growing inside of him.

"Oh wow!" She exhaled as she held onto Locke's hand for security. Her voice echoed throughout the cavern even though she was only whispering, and she jumped at the sound of her own voice. "It's kind of creepy in here. Are you sure that there aren't any pirates around?"

"I can't be sure of anything, but I think we'll be fine," he explained as he pointed toward an opening in the wall. "Let's go through there and see what's beyond that. There isn't much else in this cavern besides us and some spiders."

She grimaced at the thought of the spiders, and Locke slightly laughed at her. He led the way through the cavern through the entrance. They found themselves at another cavern, and it was lit better than the previous one. Rachel looked around in awe as she freed herself from Locke and looked around. Locke walked ahead of her, a large smile on his face.

"Locke!" She cried out giddily as she watched him. "I just realized something. What are we off to find today? We've walked all this way and you haven't even told me yet!"

"Soon you'll…" He started as he slightly stumbled over a loose rock. "Ow, dammit." He cursed under his breath as he stopped and rubbed his now throbbing toe. "Anyway, you're not going to believe what awaits us up here!"

"Oooh, sounds mysterious!" She slowly walked after him, looking up at the ceiling and along the walls. There were many drawings of things and she was very intrigued by the tiny pictures and diagrams.

He noticed that she was further behind than he was, and he wanted to get to the treasure as quickly as possible with Rachel in sight. "You have to keep up with me though, or else I'll get all the treasure!" She looked up at him and with a playful giggle started to follow him. "Come on it's worth a fortune!"

He started to step on the bridge, but hesitated. Rachel caught up with him and stood behind as he investigated the bridge. "Yikes. Nothing beats fear like walking across a rickety old bridge. Who knows how long this bridge has been standing here."

"It looks okay," he stated as he leaned over to get a closer look at the ropes. As forcefully as he could, he shook the rope railing to see if it would crumble. It remained in one piece, and he exhaled in relief.

"Locke, I don't know about this," Rachel cautioned as she grabbed Locke by the arm to hold him back. "It doesn't look very safe and I don't know what I would do if something were to happen to you. It's kind of hard to have my huge spring wedding on the beach without my groom. Ya know, the wedding that I'd like to have soon! The sooner the better actually." She giggled at her thought, but her smile faded when she noticed the grim look on Locke's face over the bridge. "You know, maybe we should see if there is another way."

"I don't see one and I'm really not patient enough to look," he said as he quickly looked around. "Don't worry about it. I'll make sure that everything is okay then you follow me."

Although she was still skeptical of the entire situation, she let go of his arm and tried to brighten up the situation. "The man goes before his fiancée, how sweet. Is this in the handbook too—" Locke heard Rachel stop talking at the same time that he heard a sickly snapping sound coming from where he placed his foot on a board. He didn't have time to react before he heard Rachel shriek, "Locke! Look out!"

With a force that he didn't know she had, she pushed him off of the bridge to safety on the other side and he landed hard on his stomach. He looked up just in time to hear her scream and see her fingertips disappear into the crevice that separated the mountain.

"Rachel!" He quickly scrambled to his feet, ran to the edge of the cliff, and jumped after her without even thinking twice.


	23. Awakening

**The title of this chapter is from my FAVORITE Final Fantasy piece of all time...and it's from this Final Fantasy. It's first played when Terra wakes up in Arvis' house in the beginning of the game...and then it's played a few other times. (It's actually played at the part of the game that I write about in chapter 19 in case you were curious!) This was a very hard chapter to write as well...but there is one exchange in here that is honestly one of my favorites in the fic. I put a rough draft of it in my livejournal a few months back--I wrote this in the beginning of April--but I changed some stuff around...not what was said because I LOVE what is said...but just some descriptions and stuff. Okay, another thing that is rather amusing...the character of Xane was created because of this chapter. I needed someone to have the conversation with Locke and the end of this chapter--if you're a hardcore VI fan, you'll understand what part I'm talking about--so I created Xane. I never knew how big of a role he would end up playing in this fic though. Well, there is ONE other reason, but that will be explained in a later chapter and I'll discuss it then. I love the way my little muse works sometimes!**

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**23. Awakening**

_It's been three days…_Locke thought, gently holding Rachel's frail hand in his own. He watched her closely, looking for some sign that she might wake up. She was lying so still that if it weren't for her chest gently rising as she breathed, one would assume she were dead. Her face was pale, and her normally rosy pink lips were almost as pale as her face. It had looked like death was knocking at her door, just waiting for the young girl to let him in.

Locke reached over to grab the cloth that was in a bowl next to him. The bowl contained steaming hot water, and he constantly was dipping the cloth in the water then placing the damp cloth on Rachel's forehead. There was a bruise there from where she landed on a rock from the fall, and he was hoping that the warm cloth would make the swelling go down.

Since the fall three days previous, Locke hadn't left her side except to shower. Even when he was in the shower, he quickly washed his body then went out to sit by her again. He placed a chair next to her bed and waited for her to wake up, hearing the clock tick away the minutes that seemed to last as long as days. His face could've been compared to hers; pale from not sleeping since the night before the accident. Dark circles were under his eyes and a large mug of coffee sat on the dresser next to him.

He longed for her to flutter her eyes open and smile at him again, but the doctor said he wasn't sure if she would ever wake up. "The longer it lasts, the less likely it is…" The doctor told Locke and Rachel's father with an apologetic sigh when he first visited them. The doctor assumed it was brain damage and was surprised that she was in the condition she was. Locke even heard the man mumble, "She's damn lucky to be alive…"

Locke knew that Vaughn and Xane were both probably worried sick, for Locke never was away for this long on a hunt. _If they knew that I took Rachel with me, they would be even more livid…_He thought as he shifted his weight in the small wooden chair. _I should've tried to contact them to inform them that I'm alive, but they'll understand when she wakes up and I come back…_

He sighed at his own thoughts, doubting them as they crossed his mind. The sound of her screams as she fell through the old bridge echoed in his mind non-stop, almost as if the entire thing happened in slow motion. _I never should've taken her along…_

His nervous hands found their way to the crown of his head to follow the habit of fixing his bandana. Of course, when his hands met his hair, the bandana wasn't there. It was tied around Rachel's upper arm to stop the bleeding, for a rock badly scraped her arm from the fall. When the doctor cleaned the wound, he handed the bandana back to Locke, but Locke requested to keep it on her. The doctor was confused, but abided the young man's wishes anyway.

"Why are you still here, boy?" Locke slightly jumped as he heard the rough voice of the Baron VanLente standing from the kitchen. It was the first thing he had said to Locke since the doctor left. Hearing the Baron yelling at him that day, blaming the entire situation on him struck hard in Locke's heart. Locke knew that it could've been him lying unconscious, but it wasn't. Rachel heard the crack of the wood and pushed him to safety. As many times as Locke clarified the story, Baron believed in his own mind that Locke pushed her down to her fate.

"I'm waiting for her to wake up," Locke replied, his voice soft and reserved. He was surprised that the Baron simply stormed off to a different side of the house and let Locke stay by Rachel's side. He was slightly afraid that the man would've kicked him out, but he thanked his lucky stars that he was still able to stay here, despite the Baron's feelings of hatred toward Locke.

"Well, you shouldn't be here." The man's voice was deeper and more gruff than usual and Locke turned to face him. Much like himself, he looked exhausted and worn out. As Locke continued to look at the older man, he saw that he held a wrinkled newspaper in his hand. It was the newspaper from several days ago that the Baron had been reading and rereading over and over again. He sat at the kitchen table, and although Locke could hear the pages turn every so often, he knew that no words were being absorbed.

"What if she wakes up…" he trailed off, his voice choking up as he fought back tears. "I don't want her to wake up all alone and realize that I'm not here. I don't want her to think that I gave up on her and just left."

"She won't be alone," the Baron told Locke as he put the newspaper down on the table and walked over to where Rachel was laying. His eyes burned with hatred as he stared down the younger man, towering over him for he was standing up. "She'll have me. She'll always have me. I'm all she needs."

Locke looked down at Rachel's hand again and felt the tears building up. He shook his head and stroked her cheek with his fingertips. "Baron, I know that you don't like me, and that's fine. I honestly don't give a damn. But this isn't about what you feel. This is about Rachel. For her sake, I won't leave her."

"Fine," he snapped as he stormed off toward the kitchen and put the coffee mug that was on the table in the sink. He more or less dropped it, so it made a loud clattering noise as it hit the metal. Locke was surprised that it didn't shatter. "Then do me a favor. I need to run to the item shop quickly, so stay here with her."

"I told you, I will not leave her," Locke reassured the Baron, enunciating every word. The older man huffed as he walked over to him and pointed with his finger.

"I will be back in twenty minutes," he informed the younger man as he put on his coat. "Hopefully sooner, but may the goddesses help me if you do anything wrong."

Locke didn't even dignify the Baron's threat with a response; he simply looked down at Rachel and felt a tear fall down his cheek. The Baron slammed the door behind him, causing Locke to jump slightly. He stood up and walked to window and when he saw that the Baron was out of sight, he walked back up to Rachel and kissed her gently on the lips.

Tears that had remained dammed behind his eyelids now streamed freely as he reached into his pocket for the ring that he hid. When the accident happened, he didn't even think about removing it until he noticed it when the doctor was examining her. He wasn't sure how he was going to explain the engagement to the Baron yet without Rachel telling him herself, so he slipped the ring off unnoticed. After turning the tiny golden band around in his fingers a few times, he lifted up Rachel's left hand and slid the ring on her finger.

"Rachel, please," he pleaded quietly, holding her hand to his lips and kissing it. Her skin felt papery thin as he gently brushed his lips over it. "You need to wake up. I'm nothing without you."

As he looked at her, he could hear the birds singing outside. He wanted to run to the door and scream at them for intruding on the moment, but he didn't find it in him to move. Using the back of his hand, he wiped his tears away, realizing that no amount of tears was going to wake her up.

"Pull yourself together, Locke Cole," he said to himself with a sniff. He shook his head then placed his chin in the palm of his hand. With a grimace, he felt his facial hair tickle his hand. He hated not shaving, but he knew it would take away precious moments of the day. _Moments where she might wake up…_

Looking out the window, he felt himself zone out from fatigue. He felt his eyelids growing heavy, but before they shut he felt her fingers twitch in his grasp. He dropped her hand in surprise, then moved so he could look at her face. Her eyelids trembled, as if they were asking to be opened.

"Rachel!" He cried as he gently stroked her hair. "Are you awake? Come on, Rachel! Wake up! Come back to me, please…"

The seconds slowly ticked by as Rachel blinked her eyes open and looked toward Locke. His tears of grief suddenly turned to tears of joy as her eyes locked with his. His smile lit up the whole room as he wrapped her in his arms tightly around her.

To his surprise, instead of reciprocating the embrace, she let out a frightened scream and pushed him away. He blinked in confusion, slightly backing away from her so she could have some room and try stand up on wobbly legs. She placed her hand against her forehead and made a pained face.

"Rachel…" He started as he once again reached out for her. Instead of saying anything back to him, her eyes widened in fright and she slightly faltered backward.

"Who are you?" Locke wasn't sure what his reaction should be to her question, so he laughed out of fright.

"Rachel, it's me! Locke!" He exclaimed as he pointed to himself. She shook her head and closed her eyes, her hand still on her forehead. "You…do remember right?"

"I…" She started as she put her hand against the wall to stabilize herself. Locke waited eagerly for her to go on as she looked at the floor. After a minute of silence and Locke worrying, she looked at him and said quietly, "I can't remember anything…"

"What?" He exclaimed rather loudly, frightening her even more. His heart was racing, hands began to sweat, and started to feel weak. "What…What do you mean?"

"I don't remember anything," she repeated as she looked up at him. "What are you doing here?"

_No…no no no…_He thought as he walked over to his chair and sat in it. _This isn't happening…This can't be happening…_Fighting back tears, he stood back up and walked over to her. With every step that he took toward her, she backed away closer to the wall. "Rachel, please don't be scared."

"How do you know my name?" She asked, her voice wavering as she continued to walk further away from Locke. She let out a yelp when her back met the wall.

He stopped walking toward her and bowed his head. He wasn't trying to frighten her, he was just trying to hold her in his arms again. "You don't know who I am? Or what happened the other day? Or, goddesses, what has happened between you and I? Nothing?" She shook her head and brought her left hand up to her forehead again. As she did, the sunlight that was pouring in the window caught the diamond and made it sparkle. He felt his heart sink.

"I'm sorry…" She apologized as she used her hand to place a stray tendril of hair behind her ear.

In almost a whisper, he said, "Do…me a favor. Look at your left hand." She lifted up her left hand to see the ring, and gasped when she did.

"What's this?" She asked, not looking up at him. Locke knew that she knew it was an engagement ring, but the fact that she didn't remember that it was from him tore him apart.

"You told me 'yes,' Rachel," he reminded her as she closely inspected the ring. "You want to get married on a beautiful spring day on the beach. 'The sooner the better,' you told me. Although I asked your hand in marriage only four days ago, you told me that you had a perfect vision of what you wanted in your mind; including me next to you for the rest of your life."

"I…I'm sorry," she apologized again, her eyes filling up with tears as he tried to spark her memory. "I just don't remember…"

Instead of stopping like he could tell she wanted him to, he continued. However, now his voice was more desperate and not as kind. "You wanted me to take you treasure hunting with me, so after you begged me for a year, I gave in. We went into a cave and the bridge…" he paused as he saw the memory play back in his mind. After a shaky inhale, he resumed his story. "The bridge started to collapse and you pushed me to safety. I saw you fall and I jumped after you, but I was too late. You were lying so still on the floor. So still…I couldn't do anything for you. I wanted to, but I just couldn't—Goddesses! Don't you remember _anything_?"

"I'm sorry!" She cried out, instantly calming him down. He didn't realize that he was shouting at her until he heard his voice echoing in the house, so he looked away from her in shame. For a reason that Locke couldn't find, she slowly walked over to him and placed her hand on his arm, trying to turn him in her direction. "I wish I could remember."

He sighed and slowly looked up at her. Although she was so near to him, he knew he couldn't hold her close anymore. As he looked into her eyes, he could tell that she didn't know who he was, and the thought killed him inside. It was just her nature to be a caring person, and seeing him so worked up about something she didn't understood was enough reason for her to try to console him. Turning his eyes away again, he quietly said, "I wish I could forget."

The front door flew open, causing both Rachel and Locke to whip their heads over toward the Baron. The Baron saw Rachel awake, and his hand flew to his heart. His eyes closed and Locke could see the shimmer of tears forming around his eyelashes.

"Rachel…" Still in his coat, he walked over to her and reached his arms out. "Thank the goddesses, you're all right."

"Daddy," she exhaled as she fell into his arms, crying once she reached his chest.

Locke's breathing began to race even more when he realized that it was only her short term memory that was damaged, not her long term memory. _She doesn't know who I am…_He repeated in his head as he looked down and felt the tears well up again.

"Rachel, I was so worried," the Baron explained as he ran his hand up and down Rachel's back. "Locke and I didn't leave your side."

The sentence infuriated Locke, for it seemed as though the Baron was supportive of Locke staying there, even though he knew that the Baron hated it. "Now, wait just a second—"

"Locke? Who's that?" She asked as her eyes moved toward Locke. "Oh, him?"

The Baron's face fell as his gaze shot daggers at Locke. Locke looked away in shame as he saw his pale face turn a bright shade of red from anger. He didn't like to feel chastised, especially by the Baron, but he knew that he was about to get yelled at.

"You!" He screamed as he moved Rachel to the side and grabbed Locke by the arm. Forcefully, he dragged Locke to the door, opened it, and threw him outside. Locke wasn't sure how he managed to land on his feet, but he was thankful that he did.

"I'm twenty-four years old!" He screamed back at the Baron. "You can't treat me like this!"

"I can treat you however the hell I want!" He grabbed Locke's coat off of the coat rack and threw it at him. "Get outta here! It's your fault she's lost her memory!"

"Wait a minute!" He challenged back as he could see Rachel peeking over her father's shoulder. He saw the ring sparkle in the sunlight and just couldn't take it anymore. "She said 'Yes!' We were gonna—"

Locke trailed off as Rachel moved in front of the Baron and looked at him. The look in her eyes was one that she had never given him before; it was cold and distant. "Go! I don't know who you are, but ever since you came here, my daddy has been upset!"

Before Locke could protest, she walked back in the house and slammed the door. It was as if she was slamming the door on his heart. He took a step forward, but stopped and looked down at the ground.

"I figured I'd find you here." Locke whipped his head up and turned around to see Xane standing about twenty feet away, leaning against the side of the weapon and armor shop. He was inspecting his sword and sheathed it when he knew he had Locke's attention. "Vaughn and I have been worried about you, you know. I didn't expect to see that though. What happened?"

"She…Her memory…" Locke stuttered as he felt a tear stream down his cheek. He watched it as it hit the ground, making a small puddle in the dirt. There were so many words bottled up inside of him, yet he couldn't figure out how to say any of them. It was if he had forgotten the skills to speak. "She…"

"Did Rachel lose her memory?" He asked quietly. With a sniff, Locke nodded his head. "Oh, Locke. What happened?"

"She and I went on a…walk," Locke began, speaking in an almost inaudible tone. "We arrived on a bridge…and it started to break under my feet…" Trailing off, he shook his head. After a pause, he closed his eyes and continued. "She pushed me to safety, but…she fell. When she woke up today, she didn't remember me. She…doesn't remember anything. She doesn't know who I am, why I was with her… Nothing. It was as if…nothing had ever happened between us. Like I was nothing but a total stranger to her."

Xane walked closer to Locke and put his hand on his shoulder to comfort him. "Locke, I'm so sorry. I really don't know what to say."

"I don't know what to do," he replied, not taking his eyes off of the ground. "I don't want to leave her. I…can't leave her." He looked up at his friend and saw the empathetic look on his face. "You don't know what I'm going through so don't give me that look."

"Locke, you're not going to want me to say this, but I think you'd best leave Rachel alone. She's going to have to make a new start of it." Locke glared at Xane, who only sighed.

Continuing the glare, he asked, "Are you nuts?"

"Locke…you know I'm right about this," Xane continued as Locke shook his head in disagreement. "Listen to me. Your being here doesn't help."

"You're crazy!" Locke interrupted, shrugging Xane's hand off of his shoulder. "What do you know? What she needs is me!"

"What she _needs_…is some time," he said back, trying to remain calm so he wouldn't excite Locke anymore. "What _you_ need is to calm down and think logically. You have to understand that she's probably so confused right now, and there's nothing you can do to make it better. If you stay here, her confusion level would only rise, causing more complications in her healing process."

Locke knew he was right, so with a defeated sigh asked, "What should I do?"

With a gentle smile, Xane put his hand back on Locke's shoulder. "My advice? Go back to the hideout. It's better if you're there."

"I don't want to believe you." His response was harsh, but Xane expected it.

"There's nothing you can do here now unless you want the Baron to kick your ass," Xane said, not letting his smile fade. "Come on. Vaughn's waiting for us anyway."

With a shaky sigh, Locke nodded his head and looked back up at the VanLente house one final time before walking out of Kohlingen with Xane.


	24. A Night At The Opera

**Okay, this is the reason why I wanted Sabin and Cyan to assist Celes and Locke on their journey to go and find Terra...ONE line that Sabin said in this part that almost made me die laughing the first time I saw it...and it's what I based his personality off of. Plus, I like the squabbles between Sabin, Cyan, and Celes that occurred in chapters 17 and 19. I have changed this chapter around so many times it's nuts. A while ago I had a GREAT idea for it, then when I went back to reread it, I was like, "NO! THAT CAN'T HAPPEN YET!" So I had to move the conversation to the epilogue instead. I actually almost scrapped this chapter completely because I didn't want the Locke/Celes romance to come into this fic...cuz I don't like that pairing, but I managed stray away from it.(Plus, I love the "that ribbon suits you..." line. I used one similar to that in Zanarkand A-East because of it, actually) However, the last time I did play this game, I realized how much the aria that Celes sings is a lot like the Rachel/Locke relationship...it makes a lot of sense. Okay, anyway...Oh, and the title of the chapter is from a selection of pieces that I picked a piccolo solo from my junior year of high school. It was the first thing that I thought of, so I stuck with it!**

**And that, ladies and gentlemen, concludes my seven chapter update! Hopefully I will work out the next chapter soon...then I'll have a few more to update! My favorite chapters (33-36) are coming up soon! **

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**24. A Night At The Opera**

_I can't believe that I'm here…_Locke thought as he blankly watched the curtain rise on stage. _The sooner Setzer grabs Celes thinking she's Maria, the sooner we get the airship, and the sooner we can get outta here! _He rested his chin in his hand as the narrator entered the stage and explained the main plot of the opera. Locke let out a chuckle when Draco, the lead male role, was ran over by several chocobos that were ridden by some of the other cast members. He wasn't sure if it was on purpose or not for the situation looked out of character, but the dramatic music fit it and the smile on the Impresario's face proved that it was meant to occur. Draco took center stage and started to sing with a beautiful bass voice, and Locke desperately tried to stay awake. The Impresario was smiling like a little school girl, so Locke assumed that everything going well.

"I have no idea what's going on, man," Sabin whispered as he leaned over toward Locke.

"Welcome to the club," he whispered back with a soft chuckle. He started to shake his leg in impatience and wondered when Celes was going to make her entrance. _I wonder how she's doing…she must be terrified…_He decided that going to see how she was doing made an excellent excuse to leave, so he stood up and slightly stretched.

The Impresario gasped when he saw Locke's action, and Locke wasn't sure if it was because he stood up or the fact that he was contemplating leaving the opera. "Where are you going?"

"I'm going to the dressing room," he said quietly as he motioned toward the door.

"Is everything okay?" The Impresario asked as Locke nodded.

"I just want to see how Celes is holding up. I'll be back, I promise." With an approving nod from the Impresario, Locke started toward the exit of the theater. As he passed Sabin, he could hear him lean toward Cyan and ask, "Uh? Why's everyone singing?"

Locke couldn't help but let out a sigh of relief when he walked into the main lobby of the building; he wasn't a big fan of opera. It wasn't that he didn't appreciate it; it was more or less that he didn't understand it. According to him, it was just something for rich, snobby people to dress up for every weekend and show off their elegant clothing and jewelry. The thought of his twenty-fourth birthday came to mind and he felt his body break out into goosebumps.

He walked down the stairs and put his ear against the door of the dressing room. He could faintly hear Celes softly warming up, and his jaw slightly dropped. She was very talented, and he wasn't expecting it. The more he heard, the larger his smile was.

As quietly as he could, he placed his hand on the door knob and turned it. He walked into the dressing room, causing her to stop singing and whip around. He wasn't sure who blushed more; him or her. He was frozen when he saw her, and after blinking in surprise several times, he let his gaze travel from her eyes to her toes then back up to her eyes. That was all he could take before he had to turn away and feel his face burn. Her long blonde hair was elegantly pulled away from her face and secured with a purple satin ribbon, she was wearing an elaborate white gown that was adorned with pearls and fancy designs sewn into the material, and she was wearing makeup. _Now she looks more like her…_he thought as he faced her once again.

"Ai yai yai!" His voice slightly cracked as he spoke and they both blushed a deeper shade of red. "Izzat…you?"

"No," she said facetiously out of nervousness as she walked toward the mirror and looked at her reflection. She slightly grimaced at the way she looked and turned toward him again as she continued, "I'm just a figment of your imagination."

"Well, it's a good thing to know that a new look doesn't change your personality," he joked with a smile. He was trying to lighten up the situation as much as possible so his cheeks would return to their normal color. "You, uh, you look good."

"Thanks, although I feel like I can't breathe in this damn thing," she replied as her cheeks flushed again. She smoothed her dress around her hips and let out a sigh. "It's just not me. I mean, I haven't worn a dress since…" Her nose wrinkled as she thought about it. "Actually, I've never worn a dress."

"Really?" He asked her as she fingered the material gently.

"Well, yeah," she answered as she looked up at him. "Not too many royal balls when you're a general. Any parties that _were_ thrown, I had to wear Imperial garb, sword and all. I was meant to look tough and give orders, not dress up and look all girlie."

"You look exactly like Maria though," Locke confirmed as he pointed at her. "Well, I've only been to one opera that she's been in and that was over a year ago, but yeah. The Impressario was right by saying that you could fit the role."

She was about ready to open her mouth to say something, but almost tripped again. "Goddesses, these heels are going to be the death of me, I swear. How pathetic is my eulogy going to be? 'Celes Chere, Imperial General turned traitor, killed by falling over and cracking her head open from stilettos.' I think that'll be a first."

"Nice," he responded with a chuckle and Celes attempted to bend over and fix her heels. "So, do you know what happened to the real Maria?"

"They sent her back to Jidoor," Celes informed him as she stumbled over the hem of her dress. "Damn heels. Anyway, the Impresario decided that if she was in the safety of her own home, she'd be, well, safe."

"How does she feel that someone is taking over her spot?" Celes leaned against the wall to fix her heels as Locke spoke.

"I don't think she's too happy with it, but she knows it's for her own good. I understand where's she's coming from; I wouldn't want to be kidnapped by some psycho either." With a mischievous grin, she added, "She lives with Impresario, you know. They've been having an affair or something like that for the last couple of years. I mean, when you think about it, it's probably how she keeps getting the lead roles in all of his operas! I wouldn't be surprised if he wrote certain operas with parts made for her. How scandalous is that?"

"Celes, are you _gossiping_?" Locke asked, playfully narrowing his eyes. She slightly blushed as she realized that he was correct.

"I blame it on the dress!" She exclaimed as she pointed to her gown. "Look at me, I get all dressed up and now I'm gossiping. I'm thoroughly embarrassed at myself for turning into a girl."

"Nah, don't worry about it," he said with a chuckle as she walked toward the score. "So, are you prepared? I mean, you weren't given a long time to learn the part. Have you even gone over the music with the orchestra?"

"Locke," she said, completely ignoring his questions. Seriousness returned to her voice as he turned away from her. "I hope you don't mind me changing the mood here, but I need to ask you something that has been on my mind for a while now."

Worry washed over his face as he exhaled. He didn't turn around to face her again for he knew she would surely see the deadpanned look on his face, so he remained facing the door. "What's that?"

There was a slight hesitation before she spoke again. He figured she wasn't sure how to form her question, although he knew that she had asked it a million times in her head. He could hear her tapping her shoe against the floor, and with a small exhale she finally spoke. "Why did you help me escape back there? You know, when we were back in South Figaro."

"Celes, that feels like forever ago." He felt the color drain out of his face as he trailed off. To hide his face, he bowed his head, but figured he better just tell her the truth instead of dodging it. "I…once abandoned someone when she needed me…" Especially since he had just seen Rachel's house for the first time in a few weeks, the memories were reopened wounds. Feeling the tears well up, he decided that it would be the best idea if he went back out into the theater.

"Oh. You're talking about Rachel, aren't you?" Her voice was small, but big enough to stop him in his tracks. He could hear her heels click when they hit the ground as she took a step closer to him. She obviously wasn't used to walking in a big dress like that, so she had to lift the hem off the ground and watch where she stepped in order not to trip and fall. "Somewhere inside you were saving…her, weren't you…?"

With a small sigh, he hung his head and closed his eyes. This was a question that was bound to come up sooner or later, but now that it was upon him, he wasn't sure what to say. He simply looked over his shoulder and said, "That ribbon suits you."

She lifted her hand to the purple satin ribbon that was entwined in her hair and let it slide through her fingers. "Uh, thanks?" Now it was her turn to sigh, but he wasn't about to explain the whole story to her. Not only would it take him a while to give her all the details, but Celes' resemblance to her in the dress was identical.

"Look, I don't like to talk about it. Just please accept the fact that I want to help you and refuse to leave your side." He faced her in the middle of his sentence, and her forehead was furrowed in confusion. To lighten the mood, he smiled at her. "I won't change my mind, so you better get over it."

She nodded slightly as she thought about it, then after half a minute, her face broke out into a smile. "Well then, on with the show!" He smiled as she changed the subject; proof that she respected his silence and his privacy. "This is a big scene in which Maria senses that something's happened to Draco!"

"You'd better check the score one last time," he suggested as she shook her head.

"Nah, I think I'm good." She slowly inhaled then exhaled. "Let me just say my words really quickly just to make sure that my mind won't go completely blank while I'm on stage or something. Okay." She froze and put her hand to her mouth. "Oh no, what's the first line!"

"Celes, relax, it's okay!" Locke said as she rushed to the score and quickly flipped through the pages. "If you calm down, you'll remember them."

"Okay, okay," she looked away from the music and faced Locke with a nervous chuckle. She then turned around again, grabbed the score and handed it to Locke. Her voice was frantic and she spoke rather quickly, causing Locke to raise his eyebrows at her. "Let me try this again. However, I want you to look at the words and make sure that I'm saying them correctly, okay? Okay. I don't want to mix anything up. I'm not going to sing the words; I'm just going to say them. 'Oh my hero, so far away now. Will I ever see your smile? Love goes away, like night into day. It's just a fading dream...' Um…Oh! 'I'm the darkness, you're the stars. Our love is brighter then the sun. For eternity, for me there can be, only you, my chosen one...Must I forget you? Our solemn promise? Will autumn take the place of spring? What shall I do? I'm lost without you. Speak to me once more!' Okay, then the guy who plays Draco comes out, turns into flowers, then I take them up to the top of the castle and continue with; 'We must part now. My life goes on. But my heart won't give you up. Ere—Who honestly uses the word 'ere' anymore besides Cyan? Anyway—'Ere I walk away, let me hear you say I meant so much to you. So gently you touched my heart. I will be forever yours. Come what may, I won't age a day, I'll wait for you always.' And that's it. I think."

"Well done," Locke said as he tucked the score under his arm and gently applauded. _Those words…_He thought to himself as he evaluated everything that she just said. _So close to the situation…'So gently you touched my heart, I will be forever yours, come what may, I won't age a day, I'll wait for you always…' The Patriarch promised me that Rachel wouldn't age a day, and she hasn't…Rachel…_

Celes walked up to him and took the score out from under his arm, breaking his train of thought. "Well, I know the words, which is a good thing, but to answer your question, no. I've never actually practiced it with the orchestra or anything. Especially since I just bastardized the first line, I hope I remember everything while I'm under pressure. I'm really nervous."

"You will do fine, Celes. You just need to focus. However, it's only natural that you're nervous." He shoved his hands in his pockets as she placed the score back on the table and quickly looked at her hair in the mirror. "This is the first time you've ever had to do something like this."

"Yeah, and it will be the last." Locke chuckled as she walked toward the entrance to the stage. "I don't want to let the Impresario down. I mean, we pretty much told him that we'd save his opera star, but he's never even heard me sing."

"Let him down? Heh, impossible." She looked back at him and he winked at her. "Besides, if it's any consolation, I'll be watching you from back here."

"What!" She exclaimed as her eyes went wide. "Consolation? You can't be serious! How is that supposed to be consolation?"

"Well, if I don't watch you here, I'll watch you from my seat on the balcony. I really don't care where I watch you, so I guess I'll just let you pick," he said as she slightly whimpered. He couldn't help but laugh at her as her face turned completely pale. "What's that look for?"

"You _have_ to watch me?"

"Of course I have to watch you." He continued to laugh at her as she moved aside the curtain and looked out onto the stage again. "Come on, stop being so self conscious. You will be great. I don't know how many times I have to tell you that before it sinks into your brain."

Completely ignoring him, she looked out toward the stage again. "Are there are a lot of people out there? I can't see; the lights are too bright."

"Do you really want to know the answer to that question?" She shook her head quickly and pressed her lips together. "Then why did you ask?"

"To psyche myself out even more," she admitted with a shrug. She gasped when she heard the song before her aria come to a close. "Oh goddesses…that's my cue."

"Good luck, Celes," Locke said with a warm smile. "I'm telling ya, you will be great out there. Knock 'em dead."

"I think that's the first time in my life where I've heard that expression used for something other than the literal meaning." Locke knew that if she wasn't so nervous, she would've laughed, but instead she sharply inhaled then quickly let her breath out. "Okay."

"I'll be waiting right here." She nodded at him and with another deep breath, picked up the edges of her fluffy skirt and made her way onto the stage.

'_Must I forget you…our solemn promise…' Rachel…My heart won't give you up…_


	25. Solitude

**YAY! A 'three chapter' update! Again, author notes for every chapter...lol, suck it up. I really should go to bed because it's 3am now and I have to be at work at 8:40ish tomorrow, but I wanted these posted. Also, these chapters are relatively short in my "Remembering Rachel Standards," but oh well. They would've dragged if they were any longer.**

**This chapter has been changed around quite a bit and I'm thankful for that. I actually had a TOTALLY different idea for the direction that this chapter was going to go in...but it would've made me cringe forever and ever. Therefore, I just kinda left you with more questions. I PROMISE that ALL ends will be tied up soon. Like I said when I started to write this fic, this is the most tangled plotline I have EVER written and that's why I had to write most of the fic before I started to post it. (Meaning, stuff from this chapter is mentioned in chapters 31, 33, 34, 35, 35, and 42--which is the epilogue. A few things are pointless but most of it is pretty damn crucial) I like the way this chapter turned out...but it took a while to put it all together and make it work. I had the idea for parts of this chapter in English/Math during the school year (and note: I've been out of school for two months) and I finished it about a week ago. That proves how long the skeleton has been on my computer. I finalized it tonight, so yay. **

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**25. Solitude**

"So, I just thought that you should know that bets have been placed throughout half the guys of Quantz over the question if you are going to ever leave your room or not." Locke didn't even flinch from his spot when he heard Xane speak from his doorway. He was lying on his bed on his back with one hand resting on his stomach and the other reaching out for the clear bottle that was on the bedside table next to him. Not taking his eyes off the ceiling, he blindly felt for the liquor and sighed when his hand found it. "Hmm, okay. If that isn't fascinating enough for you, the other half of the guys know you'll leave eventually, but they have placed bets on _how long_ it's going to take for you to leave your room. I have about 75 gold pieces on today, so you better get a move on so I can rake in some cash."

"Very fascinating," Locke drawled sarcastically as he took a drink from the bottle, still not looking at Xane. "However, you're not going to win your bet. Sorry to inform you of that."

Xane exhaled and leaned against the doorframe, disappointed that he wasn't able to have Locke even crack a smile at his joke. "Locke, come on. You've locked yourself in your bedroom for the last two days and haven't even thought to step out and make sure that everyone else is still alive. For all you know, Quantz could've packed up and moved to a different location."

"I'm sure someone would've told me about it," he replied simply as he put the bottle back down and placed his hand under his head. "I just need some time alone that's all."

"You've been alone for two days already! Damn, how much more time do you need?" Xane asked as he shook his head. "You're beyond pathetic, man. Hell, you're almost at hermit level at this point."

"Not yet," Locke stated with a shrug. "Sounds like a new goal though. Thanks, Xane."

Xane scoffed at Locke's attitude and stood up straight again. "Okay, that's enough. Come on, get up."

Locke shut his eyes for a second as he felt the effect of the alcohol on him. "There isn't a decent reason for me to do so. Besides, it's not like I'm not doing anything bothersome, I'm just thinking."

"You couldn't have picked a better spot to contemplate?" Xane questioned as he shook his head. "You _had _to lock yourself up for two days? Knowing that your door was shut and no sounds could be heard from outside hasn't been the most comforting thing to me or anyone else. We've all been worried about you."

"Well, the world is spinning, so that's kind of comforting to me." Even though Locke was attempting at humor, his face remained exanimate. Instead, he picked up the bottle and held it up, almost like a toast toward Xane.

"Yeah, I can see that you've taken up drinking." Xane moved his gaze to the collection of empty bottles that were sitting on the floor next to Locke's bed. "I never knew you drank. Where did you get all the booze from?"

"I don't drink," Locke clarified as he took another sip from the bottle, causing Xane to roll his eyes. "I just need something to take my mind off of Rachel. Nothing else seemed to help, so I decided to go along another path."

With a sigh, Xane walked over to Locke, grabbed the bottle out of his hand, and walked over to the window. "All right, that's it. I don't think you need any more of this period of drunken solitude."

"Hey!" Locke cried out as he watched Xane open the window and throw the bottle to the ground. He winced as he heard the bottle smash, then scowled at the older man. "You bastard."

Xane shut the window and pointed back to Locke as he spoke. "Believe me when I say that drinking won't take back the past. Believe me, I know. Rachel would have a damn heart attack if she saw you like this. You're a fucking mess. Seriously, think of how she would want you to react. She would want you to be yourself and go out on a hunt! Or at least leave your room and walk down the hall."

"I feel like shit, Xane," Locke said as he slowly sat up. He was dizzy from the drinking, so he had to make sure that he wasn't going to fall right back down. "I really don't feel like doing anything right now."

"You probably feel like shit from drinking for two days. Knowing that you don't have a tolerance, I have no idea how you've managed to keep it all down." Locke shrugged as he put his hand against his forehead to stop the room from spinning. "Now that I stopped you from drinking, the hangover will begin soon. You should consider getting a glass of water."

"Maybe _you_ should consider leaving me the hell alone," he spat out with a sigh. "I really do appreciate you trying to cheer me up, but like I said; I don't feel like dealing with anyone. Brooding sounds like a world of fun right now."

"I'm not going to let you do that, so since you are drinking already, how about continuing it at the café?" Locke looked up at Xane and gave him a look of disbelief. "What's the look for?"

After a few minutes of staring, Locke let out a huff. "Are you nuts?"

"No, I'm completely serious. I just destroyed your last bottle of booze and you look like you want more, so I'm giving you a reason to leave your room. We'll go to Jidoor, even though it's more of a walk, but some of the guys and I figured it would be better for you that way. I'm kind of assuming that Kohlingen isn't going to be the best place for you right now." Locke made a face at Xane as he put one of his hands on his chin, not liking the scruff feeling from his facial hair. He grimaced from the touch, then put his hand back down.

"I'm glad that you have this all planned out," Locke stated as he listened to Xane.

"Like I said, you've kind of been the talk of Quantz," Xane replied with a slight raise of his shoulders. "It's not like you to just stay in your room and not do anything. Everyone knows that you get restless if you don't have assignments lining up. If you don't have something thrown at you, you're knocking on Vaughn's door practically begging him to give you something to do."

"I don't know if I feel like going anywhere," he repeated as he ran his hand through his hair. "I need to shower, shave…and damn, I need a new bandana too."

"Well, do the first two things, then we'll buy your bandana as an excuse to get out," Xane suggested as he walked closer to Locke's bed. "It's nice to see that you've copied my look. You should pay me royalties or something." When he saw that Locke wasn't amused, he shrugged and continued. "While we're out, we'll stop at the café. Who knows, maybe playing a few rounds of poker will make you feel better. You do know how to play, right?"

"Poker? Of course I know how to play," he replied, insulted that Xane would even ask him that question. "I just don't feel like playing right now."

"Brooding isn't going to bring back her memory," Xane informed Locke with a pat on the back. Locke groaned when Xane's hand met his back, the dizziness only increasing. "Come on! She'll be fine, but just give her some time. You never know, her memory might come back on its own."

"Xane, we were engaged," Locke mentioned as he stood up and faced the wall. He scoffed as he put his hands into his back pockets.

"You…You proposed?" He asked as he furrowed his forehead. "I knew that you were thinking about doing it on her birthday, but since her birthday was awhile ago, I figured you just changed your mind."

"No, it was more or less that I didn't want it to be predictable, so I waited until it was closer to springtime. I know she likes spring," he explained with a quiet chuckle.

Xane raised his eyebrows for lack of anything to say. "Locke. Stop this. You need to. Let me put a twist on the situation for a second: What if you lost your memory instead of her? Would you want her mourning over you or would you want her to move on with her life?"

Locke sighed and slowly turned around to Xane, revealing his tired eyes and disheveled appearance. "You're right. Maybe doing something…anything…will get my mind off of her for three seconds."

"That's what you need right now," Xane added with an empathetic nod. "Like I said, it's what she'd want you to do."

"All right," Locke said with a half smile as he looked down at his clothing. "First of all, let me shower and get the hell out of these clothes, then I'll go down to your room so we can leave."

"Even if that is the alcohol talking; that's the spirit!" Xane cried as he gave Locke a pat on the back. "All right, let me tell the other guys that we'll leave in about an hour!"

"Jidoor though, right?" Locked asked, making sure that he wasn't going to have to go to Kohlingen again. Xane nodded and Locke exhaled. "Thank you. I have a feeling that if I go to…you know…I'd run into her and I can't afford to go catatonic."

"Works for me!" Xane started to walk out of the doorway, then turned around to Locke again. "You'll thank me later, man."

"I figure," Locke admitted with a shrug as he started to gather up some clothing.

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"I win again!" Locke exclaimed as he grabbed all the gold that was on the center of the table. Xane, Ben, and Virga—two other men from Quantz—groaned and handed their cards to Xane, who was the next dealer.

"And you didn't want to come along?" Xane asked as he watched Locke's smile grow with every gold piece he touched.

"Damn, I'm glad I did!" He responded as he threw in some coins to start up a new hand. "I'm taking all your gold!"

"Just don't spend it on more alcohol," Virga quipped as he took a sip from the mug that was in front of him.

"Ha ha, very funny," Locke retorted, trying to sound amused. He figured he had drank enough over the last few days, so instead of ordering liquor like the other men did, he simply ordered water to flush all the alcohol out of his system. Knowing he was still buzzed, he didn't want a hangover when that feeling ended. "I was actually thinking about going to the Auction House after this to see what they had up for sale."

"Ya know, I heard that the starting prices were very unreasonable," Ben stated as Locke fixed his new bandana around his head.

"It's an Auction House," Locke said with a chuckle. "Of course the prices are going to be unreasonable. However, look at all the gold I've taken from you three! I should be able to buy something worthwhile."

"How about spending it on them?" Everyone looked in the direction of where Ben pointed; at the dancers that were exotically dancing on the stage. Locke looked at them closely and had to admit that they were very beautiful, and he even caught himself staring. "Every time I come here, the dancers just dress more and more provocatively. I love it!"

"Eh, they're not bad," Locke said with a shrug, then motioned for Xane to deal out the cards. _The last thing I need is to think about women…_"Come on, let's get another hand started."

Xane shuffled the cards in his hands then stopped and placed them in a neat pile in front of him. "Here's a fun little idea to spice things up a little bit. Let's change the stakes."

"You always do this and it never ends out well," Virga said, making a face toward Xane. "The last time you said to 'change the stakes,' it ended up with Vaughn practically being lit on fire."

"It wasn't my fault that he was careless," Xane replied as he thought of what happened.

"Whoa, why was Vaughn almost lit on fire?" Locke asked, quite intrigued. Xane put his hand to his forehead and the two other men chuckled. "Okay, now I'm really interested. I don't care who tells me, I just wanna hear it."

"Well," Ben began to say, looking over at Xane. "Vaughn decided to have a little challenge with Xane just for the hell of it."

"It _started_ as a treasure hunting challenge," Virga clarified, still laughing. "However, this bastard over here thought it was a good idea to 'change the stakes' and make it a fighting challenge."

"He told me not to hold back, and I didn't. Of course, that meant that I could use all the magic that I wanted…and I did." Xane picked the cards back up and started to deal them out. "It was entertaining to see him swear at me because I singed his favorite jacket."

Locke shook his head in amusement as he looked at the cards in his hands. "Yeah, I can definitely picture that. I just wish that I was there when it happened."

"It will forever go down in Quantz history," Ben said, looking over at Xane to see the proud look on his face. "Anyway man, what do you want the stakes to be now?"

"Winner has to—" Xane froze as he saw the door to the café fly open. "Oh shit."

Locke turned around to see what caused his friend's action and saw several Imperial soldiers walk in and saunter over to the bar. They loudly ordered their drinks and pushed people out of the way so they would be able to sit down. He felt the cards being ripped from his hands and he faced Xane again. "Hey!"

Ignoring Locke, Xane quickly gathered up the cards then leaned in closer to the table. "We need to get out of here before trouble starts."

"It's just a couple of soldiers, Xane," Locke stated, pointing in the direction of them. "Just ignore them and deal out the cards. Even if they want to put up a fight, we'll kick their asses. It's not the end of the world."

"It's getting late anyway," Xane replied, standing up. "I had to get up early for a hunt this morning, so I'm exhausted as it is. Come on, let's go."

Reluctantly and confused, Locke stood up. He and the other two men started to follow Xane, but as they were passing the soldiers, one of them grabbed Xane by the arm to stop him. "Hey, you!" He bellowed as he got a closer look at Xane. Locke and the other two men exchanged looks as Xane clenched his teeth.

"Yes?" Xane politely asked, his hand traveling to the sword by his side. "What can I do for you?"

Without taking his hand off of Xane, the soldier stood up and narrowed his eyes at him. He brought his free hand to his chin and as he slightly tilted his head up, he muttered, "Do I know you? You look vaguely familiar."

"I get that a lot," Xane retorted and broke free of the soldier's grasp. "Have a nice day."

Without another word, Xane stormed past the soldiers, the other three men not far behind. "What the hell was that all about?" Locke asked as he caught up to Xane.

"Not a damn clue," Xane replied with a shake of his head. "He must've mistaken me for someone else or something. Let's just get back to the hideout before it gets too dark."

Locke nodded and observed the way Xane was walking. His arms were crossed across his chest, hands tightly clenched together, jaw firmly set, and eyes looked straight ahead. Locke looked at the other two men out of the corner of his eye and they simply shrugged. _What's going on? _Locke asked himself, unable to help the uneasy feeling that was growing within him.


	26. After Dining With The Emperor

**Okay, this chapter is more of a filler than anything just so everything is explained if you know what I mean. This takes place 4 days after the last 'in game' chapter, and it more or less explains their next move. I didn't originally plan to post this chapter (or the next few 'in game' chapters), but I realized that I needed SOMETHING or else I would've gone from the Opera House to the World of Ruin. Wow, I couldn't do that because so many things would've been left out. Therefore, I figured out three chapters that are actually pretty important to the storyline of VI and Locke's character, so I typed them up. Well, I don't have the next 'in game' chapter finished, but I do have this one and another one done. (I actually am really fond of the way chapter 30 worked out!)**

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**26. After Dining With the Emperor**

Locke gritted his teeth in anger as he watched the Imperial guards escort Emperor Gestahl out of the dining hall of the Imperial Palace. He wanted to do something, anything to relieve his frustration, but he knew that he couldn't. _I can't believe I just sat through three hours of Gestahl pulling the biggest charade ever…_He thought to himself as he felt his blood boil.

Gestahl called in the Returners to discuss his future plans with them, and Locke couldn't believe a word that he said. He talked about peace between humans and Espers, and Locke's favorite part; informed them that the entire Imperial army, including himself, wanted to join the Returners. Locke half expected Gestahl to say that Kefka wanted to join as well, but Gestahl actually explained how Kefka was locked up in a cell and was going to remain there for a while. _At least he can't pull any bullshit behind bars…_Locke thought optimistically. _That is…if they keep him there and aren't doing this as some kind of a ploy…_

Terra put a hand on his shoulder and gave him a warm smile, motioning him to stand up. Ever since they found her again in Zozo, she seemed a little more reserved than usual. She still wore a smile on her face, but Locke saw the determined glow behind her eyes dim, much like embers of a dying fire. Locke couldn't help but pity the life that she had; not understanding who she was or how to use her powers. With a sigh, he reluctantly obeyed and followed her to one of the sides of the dining hall where Edgar was standing, making sure that they weren't being followed by any soldiers.

"Well guys, what do you think?" Edgar asked with an exhale as he crossed his arms and walked up to Locke and Terra, meeting them halfway. "Is the entire Imperial army just bullshitting us?"

"I'm not so sure," Terra said honestly as she shook her head. "I mean, he seemed quite sincere during the entire dinner so that's why I'm still debating. I didn't see him falter over his words or look nervous at all and I thought I was watching him pretty closely."

With a nod, Locke sighed. "I tried to get him to botch his spiel up somewhere by asking him random questions and making sure that he kept talking, but unfortunately, he was fine. He didn't even break a sentence and he kept a common theme."

"I just use the excuse that he's an excellent actor," Edgar said with a huff, causing Locke to chuckle and shake his head. "What? What did I say?"

"I think you're all too accurate, my friend," he explained, quickly looking around to make sure that soldiers weren't around to overhear him. "When I first met Celes, she said that she was an excellent actress because she was so used to lying and acting when it came to the Empire. She said it simply became a way of life…"

At the memory of Celes, Locke bowed his head. _I know she was just trying to protect everyone by casting a vanish spell on the soldiers and herself…She's not a spy. I know she's not! She'll come back…I hope…_

"Don't blame yourself for what she did," Terra said, putting a hand on his arm to console him.

"Oh, I don't," he replied simply with a shrug. He was surprised that Terra was able to read his mind, but he tried not to show it. "I just hope she's all right."

"So, are we going to abide to Emperor Gestahl's wishes?" Cyan questioned as he walked over to where the three young people were talking, interrupting their conversation about Celes. "Going into Albrook with Sir Leo doesn't seem like it will be that harmful of a task. I don't trust the Empire, but I must admit, I do trust Sir Leo."

"Yeah, I've met him before and he seemed like he was a pretty well together guy, unlike the other bastards that run around Vector," Locke retorted and gestured with a wave of his hand before crossing his arms against his chest again. "If anything, it might be a way to get more information about what the Empire is really up to."

Terra sheepishly looked down at her feet and spoke in a gentle tone of voice. "I…I really want to go. I'm not sure why the Empire wants to seek out the Espers, but I kind of want to as well. I want to know where I come from. Ya know, explore the Esper part of me and understand it better. I know it sounds selfish, but…"

She slowly lifted her head up and locked eyes with Locke. He tried to smile, but he couldn't find it in his heart to. He knew that she just figured out that she was half Esper and wasn't able to deal with her past yet, and he couldn't imagine what she was going through. _Hell, she doesn't even remember what happened...Someone might be out there waiting for her… _With a nod, he looked at Edgar and Cyan. "If Terra goes, I'll go."

"You mean that?" She asked, pleasantly surprised at his kind gesture. "You…want to come with me?"

"Hey, I told you I'd protect you no matter what happens, did I not?" She nodded so he attempted a smile toward her. "Right, so I'm keeping my word."

"Locke…." She started, still in awe. "Thank you…"

"Of course," he said as he rubbed his forehead with his fingertips in thought. "The rest of you…wait here. While we're with Leo trying to find out some things, I want you guys to walk around Vector to see if you can get an insider's perspective of what they're doing. I smell a rat…"

"I must admit that I do as well," Cyan stated as he turned up his nose and sniffed. "Not a literal one of course, but I do believe what you mean."

"Agreed," Edgar said with a nod, then lowered his voice. "It's hard to trust the Emperor just like that."

With a scoff, Locke ran his fingers through his blond hair. "It's hard to trust the Emperor at all after trying to destroy many cities and basically take over the entire world. Yeah, I'd say I don't trust him. Dinner and expensive wine isn't enough to convince me that he wants to join the Returners."

"Not to mention that all he did was give us a lengthy speech about how he wants peace," Edgar added with a disappointed shake of his head. "Talk is cheap. Then again, if it was expensive, I would be broke because I like to talk a lot."

"Really?" Locke feigned surprise, causing Edgar to roll his eyes. "I didn't notice!"

"All right," Cyan said to bring things back on topic. "We'll stay here and investigate while you two go to Albrook."

"Please do," Locke replied sincerely with a nod. "Remember, this is the Empire we're talking about here; they love to hide things and they hide them well. Leave no stone unturned!"

"Right," Edgar agreed as Locke and Terra began walking out of the dining hall. "And you be careful! I don't want anything happening to you two because you decide to make rash decisions."

"We'll be fine," Locke answered for both of them as he opened the door and let Terra go through first. "Terra, are you sure about this?"

"Yes," she replied as she waited for him to catch up with her. "I think. No, I'm confident. I mean, I'll never find out more about my ancestors unless I seek them out, ya know? It's just coincidental that Gestahl decided to be noble and side with the Returners now."

With a huff, Locke kicked a stone with his shoe. "Yeah, I'm sure it was just a 'coincidence.'"

"Locke, think about it," she exclaimed and stopped him in his tracks. "They've been looking for me for quite some time, and they found me, didn't they? And look, I'm still here. They didn't lock me up and do a bunch of experiments on me! Not to mention that they didn't put that slave crown back on my head."

"Yeah, but—"

"I think we should give them a chance." Locke whipped his head up and gave her an evil glare. "Don't look at me like that because I stated my opinion."

"Okay, fine. We're all entitled to our own opinions, so here's mine; I don't want to give them a chance, Terra," he told her sternly, frightening her with his tone. "You have no idea what the Empire has done to me."

"It's because you won't tell me," she pointed out. By the look in her eyes, Locke could tell that she was still hurt that he wouldn't tell her what happened.

"Well, to sum it up, they've fucked up my life so royally that I'm still trying to atone for everything," he explained and looked up at the ceiling to avoid eye contact. "Sorry for the vulgarity, but it's true. Terra, everything just fell apart at the same time, basically ripping the life out of me."

"Locke, look at me!" She challenged as she pointed to herself. "No offence intended, but think about me here! They had me under their control for 16 years of my life! I was nothing more than a weapon to them and they knew it! I killed hundreds of people without being able to say, 'no, Terra, that's not what you're supposed to be doing with your power.' How do you think I feel in this situation?"

He bowed his head in shame for he knew she had a very legitimate point. "I'm sorry, you're right. I just…hate the Empire and everything that it's composed of. I never thought that I would be on the same team as the Empire and I'm still kind of sticking to that. But, I trust your instincts and I'm going to do whatever I can to protect you. So, say the word and I'll be by your side."

"I didn't mean to lash out, but I don't know who I am," she began, her cheeks turning red with anger. Locke knew the anger wasn't directed toward him, so he didn't argue with her. _Now that I think about it, what is her anger pointed at? The Empire? Her heritage? I'm not sure…_ "No one knows who I am. Not even myself now that I think about it. I need to find out more."

"I know," he replied in understanding. "That's why I'm going with you, okay?"

"Uhhh, sorry to interrupt…" Terra and Locke looked at the soldier who was standing by them, and Locke wasn't sure how long he was standing there, and he prayed that it wasn't very long. The soldier looked uncomfortable and shifted his weight, so it was obvious that he didn't want to barge in on their conversation, but duty called upon him to do so. "A message from the Emperor."

"What is it?" Locke asked as the soldier handed him an envelope that was sealed with the Emperor's wax stamp. He turned it around a few times before looking back up at the soldier to continue.

"Because you were able to talk to so many soldiers, you are rewarded as follows," he began to explain as Locke raised an eyebrow.

"I didn't know that it was a game, but go on."

The soldier was thrown off by Locke interrupting and speaking, so he blinked a few times as Locke opened the envelope. "Um, well, Imperial troops have withdrawn from South Figaro and Doma."

Locke took out the paper that was in the envelope, unfolded it, and read it to find out that it said exactly what the soldier just told them. He turned the paper around in his hand in disappointment that there wasn't more written on the back. "That's it? What, were you all bored down there or something so you decided to get up and leave? Or was it that you pretty much exterminated everyone so you decided to move on?"

"Locke…" Terra said softly in warning as he folded the paper back up and put it in the envelope again.

"Well…" The soldier stated, becoming more nervous that Locke was shaking his head. "I was also ordered to give you this."

"Yay! Presents!" Terra exclaimed as the soldier handed her a small red box tied with a white ribbon. She bounced on her toes as she undid the ribbon, then gave a queer look when she saw what it was inside. "There're a few things in here, but what are they? For instance, this key…What's it open?"

"Well, there are two relics and the key is to a door to one of the houses in town," the soldier explained as he pointed inside the box. "There are some more treasures in the house. I wish we could do more, but for now…"

"Okay, thanks," Locke said nicely as he put his hand on Terra's shoulder to get her to continue walking. He sighed as he and Terra approached the exit of the Imperial Palace and noticed that she was still oddly quiet. He decided not to say anything to her, for he was afraid that he would say something that would make him want to shove his foot in his mouth.

The second they walked into Vector, Banon walked up to them. The usual pensive, serious look was on his face as he studied them and they stood in silence for a minute.

"Do you think we're about to do something that we'll regret?" Locke asked, hoping for an honest answer from his mentor. "I mean, going to Albrook and going by Gestahl's new word of peace?"

"Peace, eh?" The older man repeated as he ran his fingers along his beard. "Peace. The Emperor wants peace. Ha, it just sounds so ironic to me. Could Gestahl have meant such a thing?"

"I can't help but be skeptical," Locke replied with a shrug. "But, I guess we have no choice but to go along with it. I'm doing it for Terra's sake and that's it. I want nothing else to do with the Empire."

"Please understand," Terra said to Banon, looking up at him in a way of apology. "I don't want to bring anyone into harm's way, but…"

"There's no need to apologize, Terra." Banon's voice was gentle, so Locke saw a look of relief wash over her face. "It's just an odd thing for Gestahl to ask out of us. I mean, team up with the Empire to track down an Esper?"

"Nothing we can do about it now," Locke stated as he put his hands in pockets. "We already told him that we would do it."

"We're prepared if the worst should happen," Banon explained, leaning in to the two young adults so the rest of the army couldn't hear. "Reinforcements are hiding in the forest close by, so we'll be watching what happens in this town like hawks. Albrook is to the south, so that's not too far away in case you need help."

"You've also got the airship," Terra added, Banon and Locke both nodding in agreement. "I honestly don't think there's anything to be worried about, but there's no harm in being ready in case something does go wrong."

"Exactly." Banon looked between Terra and Locke for a second before he inhaled then exhaled in small puffs. "All right, you two be careful and don't hesitate to call us if you need anything."

They both nodded before turning around and walking out of Vector.


	27. On That Day

**Whoa boy. This chapter...is probably the most emotional thing that I have ever written...and it was very hard to write. I actually wrote it in January or February when I had the idea for this fic. It wasn't the first chapter I wrote for RR, but it was the first CRUCIAL chapter that I wrote. I actually haven't edited it that much...I've added some more onto it, but that's about it. I've been pretty happy with the way it turned out even though it is one of the shorter chapters. It would've just dragged if it was longer, so I wanted to end it while it was still interesting. HOWEVER, I hope this doesn't come back to haunt me (i.e. Me grumbling at myself every time I read it) because it's not EXACTLY what happened according to stuff that's said in the game. It's actually the ONLY thing that I have written for this fic that is not 100 percent accurate. (Even stupid things that Locke has said in the game I've incorporated into this...More on that later) I haven't cursed at myself yet, so let's hope I always like this chapter. I always thought that the way it was explained in the game was quite cheap...so I like this version better. It's more emotional, more heartfelt, and more devastating. You'll see what I mean...**

**And thus ends my three chapter update! **

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**27. On That Day**

_It's been a year…_Locke thought as he kept his hands in his pockets and walked toward the Quantz hideout after a hunt. He couldn't help but feel maudlin over the memory of Rachel, but once again she was the only thing on his mind. _We could be married now…Maybe had a baby…Who knows…_

The thoughts haunted him every time he passed by the general region of Kohlingen, which, unfortunately, was on the way to the hideout every time he went to the eastern side of the continent. Although he had mainly moved on with his life and was able to be happy with himself, the memory of what happened still struck his heart like a poison-tipped arrow every time he walked this way.

He looked up from his feet and stopped abruptly with what he saw. Smoke was billowing toward the sky past the horizon, surprising him. "What the…" He muttered and continued to stare. The contrast between the gray-black smoke and the light blue sky made quite a noticeable and unusual sight. He closed his mouth when he realized that his jaw had dropped from the shock and started to briskly jog to get a closer look of what was going on. When he had a clear view, he gasped.

With the mixture of fire, screams, Magitek armor, and soldiers, it could mean only one thing: Kohlingen was under an Imperial attack. Locke's breathing sped up as he scanned the town in complete disbelief of what was happening. He caught wind of what happened in Maranda earlier that week and even though he wasn't fond of the Empire, he thought it was only a rumor for he never thought the Empire would attack an innocent town. Now as he looked upon Kohlingen, he realized that the rumors were true, and felt his heart sink because it was happening again. The town that he grew up in, the first place he had ever been able to call home, was falling apart in front of his eyes. Soldiers taunted the frightened residents as they raided their homes, causing them to run for safety. He watched as mothers held their children close to themselves as they tried to escape into the woods; only causing the soldiers to have target practice. With every person that collapsed, Locke gritted his teeth and grimaced.

_This isn't anything but a heartless massacre…_He thought to himself in horror as something to his left caught his eye. One of the soldiers threw a burning torch through the window of a house on the southwestern corner of town, causing it to erupt into flames. Locke prayed that everyone was already out, for no one would've been able to escape that alive. He noticed that the door on the house behind it was cracked open, causing Locke's heart to skip a beat.

_Rachel's house…_Locke broke out into a run and advanced toward the tiny house. He hid behind a tree as he tried to think of a plan as he surveyed his surroundings. He knew that if he were to launch a counterattack by himself, he would surely get himself killed, so there was nothing he could do but watch and attempt to think rationally. He needed a way to get into Rachel's house to see if she and her father were okay, despite the fact that her father still resented him for what happened.

After carefully looking around to make sure that there weren't any soldiers in sight and the coast was clear, he quickly ran through the open door. He peered around inside, but the dark house didn't allow him to see much of anything. There didn't seem to be any movement in the place, but that was more of a discomfort to Locke than a comfort.

He turned on the light, but didn't see Rachel or her father. He pulled out his dagger for precaution and slowly walked around the corner into the kitchen, afraid of what he would find.

The first thing he saw was a trail of blood on the floor that spread from the kitchen table to the front door, as if something or someone was wounded then dragged. Instead of running outside yet, he looked at the red splatters that were all over the wall and followed them to their origin. _Oh goddesses…_He thought as he spotted two legs sticking out from underneath the overturned kitchen table.

"Baron!" Locke exclaimed as he rushed to his side. He grunted as he pushed the heavy oak table off of the man and then looked back down. The Baron VanLente was laying face first on the floor surrounded by a large puddle formed of his own blood. Locke moved his glance to a shining object a few feet away from the floor to see the blood stained weapon that delivered the fatal blow to the once so powerful man.

He took a step back and leaned against the wall for support so he wouldn't pass out. Although he was never fond of the man, he didn't want him to die. He knew that even though Rachel complained about her father being too domineering of her, she truly did love him. At the thought of her, he whipped his head up. _Rachel…where are you? _He swallowed when he regained his strength to walk and started to search the house for Rachel.

Tears formed in his eyes as he looked around, terrified of the condition that she would be in when he found her. _Maybe she was able to get out…_He tried to keep his thoughts optimistic, but he doubted his own thoughts. _Oh shit…_He thought when he saw the bookshelf that was by the two beds in the house. There was a large hole in the wall right through it; right where the diamond was hidden. Looking closer, Locke discovered the diamond was missing. However, the diamond was important to Rachel's father, not Locke. Rachel was the only thing that mattered to him. He didn't find any trace of her in the house, so he followed the trail of blood out of the house to continue his search.

A blood-curdling scream that broke through the sounds of fire from around the left side of the house horrified Locke down to the core. He recognized that scream for it was the same scream that was emitted from Rachel's mouth that day when the bridge gave way. He made his way around the house to see a sight more terrible than he could have ever imagined.

Rachel was pinned on the ground with her dress over her head surrounded by a commander and two of his soldiers. The two soldiers laughed at her cries as they held her down and the third man, the commander, was on top of her with his pants down, pushing himself into her harder with every scream she made. Locke's beloved Rachel was being raped.

The blood his veins boiled as he grabbed his extra dagger that was hid under his pant leg. With careful aim, he threw it at the commander with as much force as he could muster, killing the man instantly. The man landed hard on top of Rachel, causing her to yelp in surprise. The two other men growled at Locke, stood up, and drew out their swords. Locke stood in a fighter's stance as he held out his dagger that was against his hip.

"You get the hell away from her," he warned as he walked closer, not dropping his stance. He prayed they wouldn't call out for reinforcements because he could take on two soldiers, but not the entire Imperial army. One of the soldiers knelt down next to Rachel, grabbed her by the nape of her neck to lift her head and shoulders off the ground, and put his sword against her throat. The dress fell away from her face but she was blindfolded, so Locke couldn't see into her frightened eyes.

Pain struck in Locke's heart as he saw her with the blindfold around her eyes, for it was his own bandana. It was the bandana that he wrapped around one of her wounds on the day that she fell from the bridge, and forgot to take it when he left when she woke up. He was surprised that she actually kept it, and horrified when he realized that something of his own was preventing her from seeing him.

"You're killing her with every step you take, are you aware of that?" The soldier sneered with an evil laugh. Locke took another step and the soldier pressed his sword closer to Rachel, breaking the first few layers of skin on her delicate neck. She cried out in pain, and Locke watched as a thin stream of blood trailed down to her gown, staining the material.

As his eyes followed the blood, he noticed that she was wearing a thin gold chain around her neck with her engagement ring strung on it. He watched as it caught in the sunlight, sparkling beautifully. The sight of it made him feel even worse and more enraged. He looked back up at the soldier, who was laughing and taunting Locke with his fingers.

Seeing Rachel being tortured was more than he could stand, so his motions were driven by love and impulse. He looked at the dagger in his hand and after a split second, he threw it at the man at Rachel's neck. The third man watched in horror as his fellow soldier fell just like his commander did. The look of fear was replaced by a look of determination as he charged at Locke to make him pay for what he just did. Locke was able to kick him in the legs and make him lose his balance, but as soon as he got up, he was able to take the upper hand in the battle for Locke didn't have a weapon.

He swung his sword and almost hit Locke in the stomach, but Locke's agility was able to get him out of the way fast enough. He kicked the soldier as hard as he could in the chest as a distraction so he could find something to attack him with. The soldier's sword was thrown to the side as he fell to the ground. Locke rushed to the dead commander and pulled out his standby dagger so he would be able to be armed, then kicked him off of Rachel. He faced the remaining soldier to see that the soldier pulled out his dagger from the other fallen soldier and it was aimed right at his arm. Luckily, Locke was able to move partly out of the way, but the tip of the dagger still grazed his shoulder, drawing blood. He groaned at the sting, but continued to fight the soldier.

The soldier knocked Locke's feet from under him, and he landed hard on his back, knocking the wind out of him. Instead of advancing on Locke with Locke's dagger, the soldier threw it as hard as he could into the woods and ran to his own sword that was knocked from his hands. "Gentlemen, move out!" Locke and the soldier both looked to the middle of town to see the General gathering all the soldiers to leave what was left of Kohlingen. The soldier laughed as Locke tried to get to his feet, and started to walk toward the center of town. As he passed Rachel, he held out his sword and, without breaking his stride, forced his sword through the middle of her stomach and left it there, impaling her.

"Rachel!" Locke cried out as he jumped to his feet, ignoring the pain from his wound. He quickly pulled the sword out of her stomach, threw it to the side, and knelt down next to her. Tears fell down his cheeks as he cradled her head in his arms and pulled off the blindfold that she was wearing. She was still breathing, but it was heavily labored as she looked up into his eyes. "Oh, Rachel…"

"Locke?" She asked in a tiny voice as she blinked a few times. The sound of his name from her lips only made him sob harder. Her body shook as she coughed, and a small trickle of blood escaped out of the corner of her mouth. He watched in horror as her eyes rolled to the back of her head.

"Rachel, no! Don't go! Don't leave me! Please don't leave me!" He hugged her close to him as he wept. The realization of what had happened filled Locke with more grief than he could stand; her memory had returned before she died.


	28. Reunion

**This is an interesting post to me because I don't like one chapter and I love the other. It seems to me that I love the chapters that I wrote a long time ago...but I don't really like the newer ones. Maybe it's because I've spent so much time editing them and whatnot? Oh well. Yeah, I really don't like this chapter, but oh well. Okay, it's not that terrible...but compared to the other chapters that I've written, it's not up to par. It's kind of repetitive and stuff...but oh well. There's only like ONE thing in here that is foreshadowing and that's kinda rare for me. Usually it's like five or six things in each chapter. Anyway, this is another 'in game' chapter and takes place after chapter 26. (Oooh, I think after this two chapter post, I'll break 100,000 words! That's a record for me so far!) **

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**28. Reunion**

"Locke, come on," Terra pleaded, slightly pulling on the sleeve of his tee-shirt as they walked through the fields toward Albrook. Locke had his hands dug deeply into his pocket, his teeth clenched together, and he hadn't spoken a word since they left Vector. "What's wrong?"

"I told you," he responded with a sigh, speaking through his clenched teeth. "I just have a bad feeling about the situation. I'm just going along with it for your benefit, so you owe me big time."

"Oh," Terra replied under her breath. "I see."

Locke huffed and shook his head at her response. "There are two things that I've wanted to do in Vector for a few weeks and now I'm leaving without doing either of them. I looked, but I should've known that it was useless."

"What are you talking about?" Terra asked as Locke shrugged his shoulders. "More secrets. Got it. So, being in the Returners is more like a vengeance gig for you then, isn't it?"

"I guess you could call it that," Locke admitted with a half smile. "Being in the Returners has helped me keep a closer eye on the Empire, thus giving me clues to solving everything. One day I'll have it all sorted out. I hope."

"You will," Terra said, gently rubbing his back with her right hand. "You'll need your resolve one day or else you'll go insane. You'll find your peace of mind sooner or later."

"I just wish it was sooner rather than later," Locke mumbled as they walked toward the entrance of Albrook. Although there weren't any more soldiers, the town was still oddly quiet. The citizens were walking around in silence, looking at Terra and Locke out of the corner of their eyes. "What's going on?"

"I'm not sure," Terra whispered, going closer to Locke so he could hear her. She pointed to something near the center of town and Locke followed her finger. "Look, there's a soldier. Maybe he'll know where General Leo is."

Locke chuckled and fixed his bandana. "Ya know, I can't believe I'm actually going to approach an Imperial soldier. This is something that I never thought I would do peacefully."

"There's a first for everything," Terra stated with an optimistic smile as they made their way to where the soldier was standing on guard. He raised an eyebrow when he saw them and Terra nervously put a strand of hair behind her ears. "Um, hi."

"Can I help you?" The soldier asked harshly, not putting down his stature or softening his gaze.

Locke saw Terra swallow, so he figured he was going to have to be the one to explain. "Hi, we were sent here by the Emperor. We're looking for General Leo, I believe."

"Ah, you must be from the Returners," the soldier replied, a small smile appearing on his face. "General Leo's waiting for you at the docks. Please, follow me."

Exchanging glances, Terra and Locke obeyed and followed the soldier to the dock area. There were several soldiers from the Imperial Navy bustling about, preparing the ship for the journey. Locke looked around and saw General Leo standing on the deck of the ship talking to several more soldiers. _There are too many soldiers here…_He thought uneasily, biting at his lip. General Leo smiled when he saw them walk down the dock.

"There you are," General Leo stated, walking down the ramp to stand on the deck. "I was starting to think that you got lost or something happened to you. I'm thankful that you proved me wrong."

"Yeah, we found it just fine," Locke replied, his sentence slowing down when he noticed that General Leo wasn't alone. There were two people behind him, a man in black armor and a very familiar blonde female. He crossed his arms and glared at the woman, then back at the general. "I didn't know we were traveling with other people."

"It wasn't in the original plan, but the Emperor Gestahl believed that strength in numbers was going to be the way to go. I hope you don't mind. Another of the Empire's generals and a person I hired in town will be traveling with us," Leo began to explain. Unlike Locke's, his voice was calm and he pointed to the two people. "Let me introduce them to you. This is General Celes Chere, and this is Shadow."

Celes nodded her head at Locke, but he didn't weaken the strength of his gaze. "Hi," Terra said cheerfully, elbowing Locke in the stomach to change his attitude. "It'll be a pleasure to travel with you."

"Yeah, it'll be nice to travel with you 'again.' A general 'again.'" Locke mumbled with a scoff, shaking his head as he looked away from Celes. He meant to speak to himself, but the words slipped out before he knew what had happened. General Leo turned his head back toward Locke and narrowed his eyes.

"I'm sorry, did you say something?" Locke shook his head at the General's question. "Oh, my mistake. However, is something wrong?"

Locke cleared his throat and put a fake smile on his face. "No. Nothing's wrong. Why would anything be wrong?"

His reply made Terra frown, Celes look down at her feet, and confused General Leo. A soldier walked up to where the five of them were talking, and the young general turned toward him. "Sir, the captain would like to have a brief word with you."

"Tell him I will be there in just a minute." The soldier saluted then walked back onto the ship. Leo let out a sigh and motioned toward the ship. "Anyway, our departure isn't till tomorrow. I've arranged some lodging for you in the mean time. The inn at the northern side of town will be expecting you.

"Thank you, that's very kind," Terra stated with a smile. "What time shall we meet up tomorrow?"

"I don't want to leave at a late hour, so I'm thinking nine o'clock," Leo said as he looked at the elegant watch that adorned his wrist. "Until then, have a pleasant night, and please get some rest."

Locke nodded as General Leo turned around and walked onto the ship. He looked back up at Celes; she still had her face pointed to the ground and she dug the toe of her shoe into the ground to avoid eye contact. Shadow had his back turned away from the three of them and watched Interceptor walk around the dock. Terra turned back to Locke and gave him a pleading look.

She motioned with her head to talk to Celes, but Locke only exhaled and swallowed. With a sigh, she took a few steps toward the blonde general. "Celes, I…didn't know you were working for the Empire again."

Celes didn't respond or even look up at Terra. _What is going on here…_Locke thought to himself as he mustered up enough courage to walk closer to where she was standing. She completely turned her head away from him, then with a sigh, she ran onto the ship.

"Celes…" Locke said with a bow of his head. He saw Terra look at him and he shook his head. "Well, that went well."

"Come on, Locke." She gently put her hand on his arm and motioned toward town. "General Leo's right; we really should get some sleep. With everything that's been happening lately, none of us have gotten the amount that we need."

"Why is she working for the Empire again?" Locke asked, mostly to himself as he looked up at the young girl. "Was that her plan all along? Was she just a spy to get more information out of us?"

"Don't think that way," Terra scolded as they began to walk to the inn. "You know that's not it. Besides, the Imperial Army is part of the Returners now anyway. So, she's still technically part of the Returners, but she's just not adventuring with us."

"You're always so optimistic," Locke said, shoving his hands in his pockets. He looked at the ground but he knew that Terra was still smiling. "I know that might be her intentions, but you would think if that was the case she would still talk to us. It's almost like she's embarrassed that she's by Leo's side again."

"Well, then you just need to convince her that everything is still fine between her and the rest of us." He whipped his head up and narrowed his eyes at her. "What is it?"

He curled his lip in annoyance and huffed. "Why am I the one who has to do it? Why can't you? You both can use magic, so don't you have an automatic bond or something?"

"First of all, just because we both possess the power of magic doesn't mean we understand each other. Secondly, you know her better than the rest of us. You were the one who rescued her," Terra mentioned, causing Locke to scoff.

"Yeah, I rescued her from the bastards that she ran right back to." He opened the door of the inn for Terra and let her walk in. He walked up to the innkeeper, frowning at the smile that was on the man's face. _I'm not in the mood for cheeriness…_He thought as he looked at Terra to do the talking.

"Good evening," she chirped happily, nonchalantly kicking Locke in the shin to break his attitude.

"Ow, dammit!" He cried through clenched teeth, rubbing his sore leg with his other foot. "What the hell was that for?"

Ignoring Locke's complaints, Terra continued to smile at the innkeeper. "We're here with General Leo and he informed us that he reserved a room for my friend and I tonight."

"Yes, here are your keys," he replied, grabbing two keys off the counter and giving them to Terra. "It's the first room on the right. Please have a pleasant night."

"Thank you," Terra said as she handing one of the keys to Locke, who was still grumbling over the fact that his leg was throbbing. When they started to walk back to their room, she glared at him.

"Would you please knock it off? You're making a complete fool out of yourself, not to mention that you're embarrassing me."

Her words made him clench his teeth. "Maybe I'm just tired or something, I'm sorry. You're right, I've hardly gotten any sleep lately so I need to just lay down or something."

She opened the door then put the key into her pocket. "You know, you think too much. If you just clear your mind every once and a while, you wouldn't be as stressed and you would be able to sleep."

"Thanks, mom," he teased with a half smile and entered the room. With an exhale, he sat down on one of the beds and started to take off his shoes. "I'll try that right now because I feel like I'm going to pass out right here."

She giggled and stretched her arms over her head. "Well, that works too. Good night, Locke." She yawned and flicked the switch to turn off the light.

"Night," he replied, hugging the blankets closely to his chest as he closed his eyes.

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_Yeah, so much for the sleeping tactics, Terra…_Locke thought bitterly as he looked up at the ceiling. He could hear her softly breathing as she slept and he wished that he were doing the same. Although he tried to fall asleep numerous times during the night, he was still awake. Every time he would start to doze off, a new thought process would start and it would wake him back up.

He put his hand on the table next to his bed and blindly felt for his watch. When he grabbed it, he squinted to see the time. _What? It's only 2 in the morning? It feels so much later than that…_He sat up and put his feet on the floor, rubbing the sleep out of his eyes. Feeling the gentle breeze that swept through the room from the open window on the far wall, he decided that going outside would be a new atmosphere to think in rather than staying indoors.

As quietly as he could, he put his clothes on and left the room, locking it behind him. He knew he wasn't going far from the inn, but he wanted to make sure that no one was going to get past him and get to Terra. With a polite nod to the innkeeper at the front desk, he left the building and walked outside into town.

The moonlight lit up the ground and reflected off the cobblestone, providing more than enough light for Locke to see where he was going. He leaned against the railing to look out at the sea, but something moved to his left. Whipping his head in that direction, he saw Celes playing with her hair and looking down at her feet.

"Celes…" He began gently, hoping that she could hear him. She didn't respond, so he cleared his throat and started to walk closer to her. "It's late. What are you doing out here? I, uh, take it you had trouble sleeping as well?"

Again she remained quiet, so he took another step toward her. "Celes, come on. Why won't you speak to me? I know you can hear me." He bowed his head and closed his eyes. "Celes, I'm sorry. Even if it was only a little…I doubted you. But I want you to know that no matter what happens, I'm still your friend."

He heard her high heels click on the stone and he looked up at her and saw that she had begun walking away. "I won't stop protecting you, either." She stopped, so Locke felt relief.

Before he could say another word, she bowed her head again then ran toward the other side of town. He didn't want to make a scene so late at night, so he walked back over to the railing and looked down at part of the town that was below. _Yep, no sleep for me tonight…_He shook his head and let out a lengthy sigh at his thought.


	29. The Patriarch

**I like this chapter...I just really do. I spent a lot of time on it...and there's a few things summed up in this chapter, but unless you've been paying CLOSE attention to what Locke has said in a few chapters, you won't even notice it. Oh well...I do. lol! So, I was going to post two more chapters tonight...But I don't know if I'm even going to post what I had planned for chapter 30. It's already written out...it's done...and I like it...But it really deals with Espers and not the story of Locke. Therefore...I might...scrap it. Ohhh, that's painful to say. I don't know yet. I'm going to give myself some time to think about it. Anyway, I hope you enjoy this chapter...it's in 'before game' time...**

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**29. The Patriarch**

Everything was a blur to Locke. Never in his life had he felt more numb to anything. The tears flooding his eyes prevented him from seeing anything clearly, and although he wasn't looking at her, all he could see was the red of Rachel's blood. There was blood on his hands, clothes, and even dripping on the ground, but he wouldn't look down. Looking down at her would only prove to him what really happened, and he knew he had to keep his composure until he reached his destination.

She was in his arms as he walked toward the northern part of the continent. Although he knew the Northern Continent very well, he had never dared explored the tip of it. The peninsula split in two and was known as the 'Dragon's Peninsula,' for it looked like the shape of a dragon's head. Many stories were spread about it, stating it was haunted, therefore it was considered sacred ground and no one should step on it. Locke wasn't superstitious, but due to the fact that he never had any assignments dealing with the peninsula, he stayed away from it. Now he had specific reasoning to go that far north.

No one had ever lived there, save for a rumor of one man. He was once a very successful man who lived in Jidoor, but his wife and son were murdered several years ago. He proclaimed that he had the power to save them, but he was called insane for having such an accusation before he was able to act on his miracle. Before the funeral of his wife and son, he was sent to exile on the top of the peninsula where he continued to live in solitude and tried to atone for his past. Although Locke wasn't sure how much of the story was based on actual fact, he was desperate enough to try anything. He didn't know of any other solutions, so this was a risk he was willing to take.

Like a man possessed, he made his way through the plains, along the sandy coast line, oblivious of anything but the horizon, hoping to see the house. Ironically, the sun was shining, the birds chirping as they flew overhead, the sea gently crashing by his feet; there was innocence and peace in the air. It had been approximately an hour since the sounds of shrieking and flame had ceased to reach his ears, but it continued to echo in his mind over and over. He knew that sight and sound would never leave his memory.

Squinting from the bright sun, he noticed a dark shaded area to his left; the house. His heart was too heavy to become excited, but a small ray of hope shone down on Locke. Slightly picking up his pace, he held Rachel tighter to his chest and continued on his way.

Upon reaching the house, he saw a man clad in red robes kneeling in front of his shrubbery. Locke could hear him humming softly to himself as he tended to his garden. Although the shrubs and flowers were in perfect condition, the man still rummaged through to make sure that they were free of weeds and harmful insects. Occasionally he would stop humming and cock his head to the side to admire his work, but after a split second he would continue humming and resume his garden duties again.

Instead of stopping, Locke walked right toward the man, eager to know if there was some way to save Rachel and bring her back to life. Unlike his usual stealthy nature, Locke carelessly stepped on a tiny stick. It snapped as it broke from the pressure of his foot, startling the self proclaimed medicine man. He whipped around and placed his hand on his heart, nervously chuckling under his breath from the fright. Although he clearly saw the fallen girl in the young man's arms, he remained unalarmed. He calmly stood up and brushed his robes and hands free of dirt.

"Well, what have we here?" The man asked as he crossed his arms and bent over to get a closer look at Rachel's wound.

"The most important thing in my life," Locke stated as his voice broke. The patriarch looked up at him and didn't say anything, so Locke continued, his voice slightly wavering. "I need your help." With a brief nod, the man gave the young woman a once over then ushered Locke into his house.

Once inside, Locke looked around, shocked that the place was as untidy as it was. Bottles of potions were placed on various locations throughout the small one room house, books were strewn across the table leaving the bookcase rather bare, herbs placed in random spots in the area that Locke could see. He had to make a double take when he looked at the old grandfather clock that stood against the wall. Not only did it look worn out and tired, but the pendulum was ticking in an inconstant rhythm, and when he looked at it closer, it was clearly the wrong time.

"Place her on the table," the man ordered with a snap of his fingers in the correct direction. Blinking out of his daze, Locke exhaled, walked over to the table, and gently laid Rachel down. He lovingly stroked her hair, and as he retracted his hand he noticed that he had left a red smear from her own blood that coated his skin. Seeing the blood on his hands, he looked down to see that his clothes were stained a dark crimson from the liquid and felt his stomach slightly turn. With a shaky breath, he inhaled to rid the nauseous feeling from himself.

Locke watched the man take his glasses out of the case and placed them confidently on the bridge of his nose. He pursed his lips as he leaned in toward Rachel to investigate what happened to her. He lifted her hand for a pulse and shook his head when he couldn't find one, causing Locke to look away in pain. He knew that she was dead for he checked for her pulse numerous times back in Kohlingen. When he looked at the old man again, he saw that he had grabbed a knife from his pocket and cut open Rachel's dress, leaving her in only the slip she wore underneath. He looked at the delicate necklace around her neck and unclasped it.

"Um, I'll take that," Locke stated as he reached out his hand, his palm facing the ceiling. The patriarch gave him a queer look, but Locke motioned with his fingers. "I bought it for her. We were, um…we were engaged."

"Why isn't the ring on her finger?" The man asked as he held up the necklace and studied Locke.

"It's a long story, and I don't have time for stories right now," he responded fiercely as he again motioned with his fingers. "Now, give me the ring. Please."

With a sigh, the patriarch walked over to Locke and placed the necklace and ring in his hand. Locke held it up by the clasp to look at it, then coiled it back up in his other hand as he held back tears. He nodded with his head to the patriarch so he would continue inspecting Rachel. The patriarch wiped his hands on a towel as he walked back over to where the young woman was lying. With his bare hands, he gently pressed on the wound, letting the little remaining blood she had left excrete onto his fingers.

With a slight nod, he reached over to grab a clean cloth that was on the edge of a chair and wiped the blood from his hands. "Well, there's some good news."

"What's that?" Locke exclaimed as he felt his pulse start to race with hope. "Can she be saved?"

"I never said that," he answered with a slight giggle. His voice almost had a hint of excitement in it as he spoke, confusing Locke. "The good news is that it's not as bad as it looks."

"What?" Locke narrowed his eyes and rushed over to the table. The man continued to wipe his hands as he looked at the young woman. Locke wasn't sure if he heard his question or not, so he reiterated his statement. "What do you mean 'it's not as bad as it looks?' She's dead!"

"I mean, with my herbs and potions, I can preserve her." With a slight chuckle, he walked over to the cupboard and started grabbing several small bottles.

"Preserve her?" Locke asked, astonished. He shook his head in disbelief when the man turned around with five or six colored containers in his grasp. He tried not to raise his voice, but the frustration inside of him was building. "I don't want to 'preserve her.' I want to bring her back to life! I need her with me! You just don't understand!"

"The thing that _you_ don't seem to understand, young man, is that she doesn't bear an everyday wound," the man began to explain calmly, clearly ignoring Locke's impatient and harsh tone. He grabbed the tea kettle off his stove and filled it with water without continuing.

"What do you mean?" Locke demanded. Although he knew the man was going to help him, he wasn't appreciating his short and noncommittal phrases. "Explain it to me, please!"

The man then placed the tea kettle back on the stove and turned on the flame to heat it up. Without facing Locke, he simply fussed through his potions and herbs to find the correct ones to add to the water, letting a silence linger in the air for several moments. "She was stabbed by an Imperial sword."

The image of the sword going through her stomach flashed in Locke's mind again against his will. Tears were starting to form again in his eyes, but he blinked them away and refused to let them fall. He was surprised how he was able to still have liquid left in his eyes after crying for so long. "I know. I…I was there when it happened."

"The thing is," the man continued after more silence as the tea kettle whistled. He walked over to the stove and started to add his random assortment of herbs to the boiling water, stirring every time he added a new substance. When he was satisfied with the mixture, he poured some of the liquid into a bowl and grabbed a clean cloth. As he spoke, he sprinkled more herbs onto the water and started to clean the blood off of Rachel. "The sword itself wasn't enough to kill her. You see, none of her vital organs were punctured. She would've survived if it were just the sword that went through her."

Locke shook his head in confusion with the man's talk. Briefly pausing, the man dipped the cloth into the medicated water and continued to clean the blood off of Rachel. "I don't understand you."

"Poison," he replied simply as he looked up from his work, peeking over the rims over his glasses at Locke. "I wasn't sure when I first heard word on the street about it, but after seeing her wound, the theory is confirmed; The Imperial soldiers now coat their swords heavily with poison. It's the sure way to kill things easily and instantly."

"But…but I have several antidotes with me," Locke exclaimed as he reached into his pack for the small bottles. "Besides, you're a medicine man, you should have a whole cupboard of antidotes around here somewhere! Poison is one of the most common ailments nowadays with the different fiends that have been roaming the world. I've had some pretty close calls myself, that's why I always carry the right supplies with me."

He held them up to show the older man, who responded with a sigh. "Your common everyday antidotes are no match for this kind of poison. This poison is purely magic. You need to fight magic with magic."

With a sigh of his own, Locke put the antidotes on the table and hung his head. "Rachel…So you mean these herbs have actually saved her? That's what you mean by 'preserving' her?"

"Of course! The love of your life with sleep here like this forever! She won't age a day!" He cried with another chuckle as Locke moved around the small bottles that he placed in front of him.

"What if there was some way to…call her back?" He asked as he slowly lifted his head up to face the man, who was still grinning idiotically.

"If you could call her back…she'd come back!" He responded as he took off his glasses and rubbed his eyes. "I've heard of you, Locke Cole. I'm sure you'll find something that'll bring her around!"

"How do you know my name?" Locke narrowed his eyes at the man in wonder, but the patriarch only continued to laugh.

"Is your name important? Besides the fact that you're a wonderful treasure hunter," he said as he looked at Rachel's wound and laughed again.

"I don't see the humor in this," Locke snapped with a harsh glare. He rested his hands on the table and leaned in toward the man. He waited until the patriarch's giggles ceased before he resumed. _I'm not going to get anywhere with him giggling…_ "I will find a way to bring her back. Trust me."

"I wish you the best of luck. Until you do find something, I'll keep her here." He wrung out the blood soaked cloth in the water, turning it a hue of pink as he spoke. Locke was amazed how he could go from completely insane to serious in the time span of three seconds. He also felt uneasy leaving Rachel in the hands of a complete stranger, but he figured that was the only way to keep her safe. "However, I'm not doing this for my health you know."

Locke caught on and reached into his pockets for some gold pieces. "How much are we talking here? I probably shouldn't admit this, and I'm sure I'm going to regret saying it, but I'm willing to pay anything."

"How much do you have on you?" Locke half expected that answer, but he still signed, pulled out all he had, and showed it to the man. "7,500 gold pieces? That's a good start."

"A good start?" Locke swallowed the lump in his throat as he looked at the gold that was in his hand. He grimaced when he looked back up at the old man. "How much more are you going to want?"

"After the cost of the herbs and potions, I'm assuming at least 10,000 gold pieces more—"

"I'll pay it," he interrupted, shocking the old man. "She means everything to me. If you give me time to search for a way to bring her back, you're a savior in my book."

"Well, I do what I can," he said with another chuckle. He looked at Locke's bloodstained clothing and furrowed his forehead. "You should probably go change and get some rest. There's nothing more you can do here."

"I won't rest," Locke stated confidently as he started to itch a twinge that he felt on his shoulder. With a sharp inhale, he looked at his arm to see a rather large scrape up and down his upper arm. It took him a few seconds to remember that it was caused from the same man who killed Rachel, but when he did, rage swept through his body.

The old man grabbed another cloth out of the cupboard and held it under the running water from the sink. After it was wet, he grabbed a small purple bottle that was next to the sink and applied it to the rag. He walked back over to Locke and handed him the small piece of fabric. "Here, take it with you. It'll help the wound."

"Thanks," Locke replied quietly as he put it on his wound. The ointment that was placed on it burned the wound, but Locke gritted his teeth and put the ring that was in his hand into his pocket so he wouldn't lose it.

"Why are you not poisoned?" The older man asked Locke as he gently cleaned his own wound. "Were you two attacked by different soldiers?"

"Well, there were three soldiers to begin with, but the soldier that attacked me was the same soldier that murdered Rachel. The only difference is that the soldier used my own dagger to attack me because his sword was thrown off to the side when I knocked him down. When he went after Rachel, he grabbed his sword again. I guess he knew that the blow would be deadly with his weapon." With a nod, the man started to lead Locke out of the house, but Locke stopped in the doorway.

"What is it?" The old man asked as Locke turned toward Rachel again. Locke didn't respond, he only looked at her. He wanted to go over to her and hold her in his arms again, kiss her and tell her that she was all right, but he knew that he couldn't. "Aw, don't look at her like that! I can guarantee that she won't be going anywhere! Besides, you can come visit her whenever you want to."

"I appreciate that. But, it's just that…she was the one who fell through the bridge…she was the one who was killed," he answered quietly as he looked at the man with definite pain in his eyes. "Both times I couldn't do anything but watch. Both times I wished that I were the one who had the horrible event happen to me so she would be able to be alive." The man only looked at Locke queerly as he added in an almost inaudible whisper, "I…failed her."

Without another word, he shook his head, exited the house, and with a heavy heart made his way back to the Quantz Hideout.


	30. Thamasa

**Wow, it seems like I was updating this fic less than 12 hours ago. Wait...I was. After much thought, I realized that if I didn't post this chapter, I would've been upset. I like it a lot...and although there isn't MUCH to do with the Locke/Rachel thing...it can still work with the fic. I love Relm...she's so cute, so I wanted to incorporate her into the story...and I LOVE the way she and Interceptor bonded in the game. It was so cute. Therefore, I decided to post this for sanity reasons in the future. LOL! oooh...for some reason my italics aren't working when I upload the ms word documents! I have to fix them all now! What a pain in the ass! Oh well.**

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**30. Thamasa**

The next morning, Locke woke up feeling like the world was spinning. With a groan, he put his hand over his eyes and slowly sat up, remembering that he was still on the boat. _Ugh, the fact that the boat is rocking is not helping me here…_

"How're you feeling this morning?" Terra asked with a giggle as she fiercely patted him on the back. He moaned and put his hand on his stomach, which was still slightly upset.

"Like hell," he muttered with a slow inhale of air. "I feel like something crawled in my stomach and died."

"Well yeah, you _were_ sick for over half the night," she reminded him, still giggling at the memory. "You are aware that it's almost three in the afternoon right? We were going to wake you up, but we decided that it would be better if you slept. I can't believe a strong, tough guy like you gets sea sick. I like ships."

"I prefer the train," he informed her sarcastically as he slowly rose to his feet. He put his hand on the wall to steady himself then slowly began to walk up on deck with Terra.

"Yeah, the train is great, but unfortunately a train can't take us through water from Albrook to Thamasa like a ship can." He shot her an annoyed glance over his shoulder as he climbed the stairs.

"Smart ass," he said with a chuckle. Upon reaching the deck, he shielded the sun from his eyes and saw General Leo, Shadow, and Celes congregating on the starboard side of the ship.

"Ahhh, good morning! Or should I say 'afternoon?'" General Leo exclaimed as he saw Terra and Locke. He looked at Locke, chuckled, then raised an eyebrow at him. "So, I heard you had a rough night last night! Feeling slightly better now?"

Locke scoffed at the General's laughter and rolled his eyes, making sure that he wouldn't look at Celes. He wasn't sure what he would say to her after what happened the previous night. "I'm not about to start up a fight with your ten best soldiers, but I'll be fine once we hit solid ground."

"Well, that's good news," he stated with a nod. Locke stared at his feet and by the position of Celes' shadow on the ground, she was doing the same.

_She won't even talk to me now…it's like…it's like she's pretending that she doesn't know who I am…_He thought to himself as he shifted his weight to his other foot. _I don't think she realizes that this is all too familiar of a situation and I'm not liking it…_

"Anyway, we're almost at Crescent Island," Leo explained as he pointed in the direction that they were going. Everyone turned their heads to see the patch of land that they were quickly approaching and Locke thought he was going to rejoice.

"Oh thank the goddesses," he cried, a little too happily. "I won't have to deal with the rocking boat anymore."

"He's easy to please," Terra explained as she motioned General Leo to continue. "Don't let him interrupt you. Please, go on."

"Very well. When we disembark, we'll split into two groups," he said, pointing as he spoke. "Celes and I will form one group. Terra, you go with Locke and Shadow."

"Good," Locke stated as he looked up at Celes. Even though her head was pointed toward the ground, he could see her wince. He had to fight himself so he wouldn't show her any forgiveness for the way she treated him the other night. _As long as we don't have to work together, we don't have to communicate…_He sighed at his attitude and put his hand to his forehead. "Sorry, go ahead."

"That's about it," he finished with a nod as he watched the sailors tie the boat up to the dock. "Oh, there is one more thing. If you spot Espers, report at once! Good luck, you three."

"Thank you," Terra replied with a smile.

"Okay, let's go, Shadow," Locke stated toward the shrouded man as he turned on his heel and started to walk toward the exit ramp.

"Hey…Locke…" Locke stopped walking at the sound of Celes' voice, but he didn't turn around toward her, even though he was ecstatic that she was talking to him again. "Um, I…"

He swallowed the lump that was in his throat as he turned toward Terra, not even acknowledging Celes' existence. "Terra, come on. We have work to do." His voice cracked at the last word, but he shut his eyes and continued to walk toward Thamasa with Shadow. After a few seconds, Terra ran toward them to catch up.

"Now why did you do that? Did you see her?" She asked him, causing him to let out a huff. "Oh, don't give me that."

"Terra, just stay out it," he snapped as he shoved his hands in his pockets. "This really isn't relevant to why we're here. We're here to find Espers. Besides, _you_ were the one who wanted to find out your heritage, so this shouldn't even be on your mind."

"Oh, that's fine," she replied sarcastically at him, making him regret his words. "You can just blame everything on me and turn the entire situation into my fault. I understand. It's happened more than one time in my life, so let's just add another. Thanks, Locke."

He shook his head and sighed. "I didn't mean that. I just don't want to talk about it, okay? When old memories are brought up again, it's like adding salt to a wound. Going to Kohlingen, seeing General Leo and Celes at the same time again…"

"This is relevant to the stuff that you won't tell me about, isn't it?" She asked as he nodded his head at her. With an exhale, she said, "Okay. I'll let you have your peace for now."

"Thanks," he muttered quietly as they walked into the small village of Thamasa. "I really hate to do this, you guys, but do you mind if we go to the inn for a while? I still feel so damn queasy."

"Yeah, if you want, you can rest and Shadow and I will go searching for stuff about Espers," she said cheerfully as she looked around. The villagers walked around quietly, giving the three of them queer and suspicious looks as they passed. "Hey, do you guys get the feeling that we're unwelcome guests here?"

"They live on a small island that can't be reached except by boat or airship," Shadow pointed out as he watched Interceptor sniff the ground. "They're probably not used to guests."

"Good point," Terra said as they walked into the inn.

The innkeeper flashed them a large smile, and Locke could tell that he was faking it. "Good day and welcome to Thamasa! What can I do for you folks on this beautiful day?"

"Yeah, hi," Locke said, leaning against the counter and putting his hand on his stomach. "Look, I just want to rest for a while."

"Of course!" The innkeeper stated with a nod as Locke started to dig through his pockets for some gold. "That'll be 1,500 gold pieces, please."

Locke stopped searching and looked up at the innkeeper in shock. When he looked at Terra, he saw that she had the same expression on her face. "1,500 gold pieces? You want to charge me 1,500 gold pieces to lie on a bed for a few hours? What, are you clinically insane?"

"Well, with taxes the way they are, we have to make our money somehow," the innkeeper responded politely. "So, would you like a room?"

"Hell no!" Locke scoffed and stormed out of the inn in disbelief, the other two not far behind. "Damn, I'd rather suffer! I don't quite understand how an inn, a building that solely exists to offer travelers a place to stay the night, can survive by screwing over its only customer base, but hey, that's just me! Now I'm afraid to go into the item shop to buy a damn potion! How much do you think they're gonna charge for that?"

"And you're wondering why the villagers are giving you odd looks?" Shadow said in regards of Locke's outburst.

"Not all of us can remain phlegmatic like you," Locke threw back, still upset that he wasn't able to rest for a little while. "Oh well. Where do you suppose we start looking for hints about the Espers? Should we just knock on some doors and hope that we get some info?"

"Interceptor!" Shadow cried out as his dog started to bark and run toward one of houses on the northern side of town. "Interceptor, come!"

The dog whined at the door of the house, so Shadow walked over there to scold him for misbehaving. Locke and Terra raised their eyebrows and followed him.

Before Shadow was able to yell, the door opened and an old man walked out. "What in tarnation is going on out here?"

"Oh, hi," Terra said politely with a small wave. "Sorry, we didn't mean to bother you."

"I just wanted my dog," Shadow added as he snapped his fingers at Interceptor then pointed to the ground next to him. "Sit." Locke watched in amazement as the dog obeyed.

"All right, I was just making sure everything was okay," the old man said as he watched Interceptor, mainly his razor sharp teeth. "Well, I'm going to go back inside. You folks have a nice day."

"Hey, wait!" Terra took a step forward to stop him from walking away. "You know, while you are out here, do you mind if we ask you a few questions?"

"Whatcha want with me?" The old man asked as he narrowed his eyes. He took a few steps outside and shut the door before speaking again. "You aren't trying to sell me something are you? I swear, there are more merchants around than anything else these days."

"Nothing of the sort," Locke replied politely as Shadow gripped Interceptor's collar roughly to hold him back from sprinting inside for he was becoming antsy again. "You wouldn't happen to have any information about Espers, would you?"

The old man's eyes went wide in shock, then he calmed himself down and cleared his throat. "Espers?" He repeated as he looked up at the sky and rubbed his beard in thought. "Espers…Hmm. Not really familiar with that word."

"But, you've heard it before?" Locke asked as the old man shook his head nervously.

"Nope, uhn, uhn…Can't say I have," he said, stuttering over every word. "Honestly can't say I have! Sorry!"

Locke turned back around to Terra and Shadow and bit at his lip. "That's odd…"

Before Locke was able to discuss it further, they all heard tiny footsteps from inside. As they looked at the door, it flew open and a small girl poked her head out. She was short, blonde, had several different colored paint smears on her face, and held a paintbrush in her hand.

"Grandpa!" She exclaimed cheerfully as she put the paintbrush behind her ear. "What's going on?"

"This is my granddaughter," the old man drawled as he pointed to her. She smiled and opened the door all the way, closely looking at Terra, Locke, and Shadow. She began pulling at her grandfather's clothing. "Hey…HEY! What in blazes! What're you doing?"

"Grandpa," she started, half whispering as she walked over to them and started to circle them. "Who are these people? Huh? Are they friends?"

"Well, they just stopped by to ask me some questions," he stated with a shrug, and Terra and Locke nodded in confirmation.

"Oooh!" She squeaked as she stood between Locke and Terra and looked up at them. "That's fun! We never have anyone new stopping by! So, who are they? Can they use magic, too?"

"Yaa! Hush!" The old man shouted.

Locke and Terra exchanged glances and smirked at each other at the combination of what the young girl said and the old man's reaction.

"Heh," Locke said quietly as he eyed the old man. "Magic, eh?"

"Kids these days," the old man said as an excuse, blushing around his cheeks. "They say the darndest things."

"Aww, what a cute doggie!" The young girl squealed as she ran up to Interceptor.

"Get away. He bites," Shadow warned her, but she didn't listen. Instead of Interceptor attacking her like he was trained, he started to playfully lick her as she went down on her knees to pet him.

"Nonsense!" She said as the dog tried to climb on her. "He's so playful!"

"Relm! Go to your room!" The old man snapped and pointed to the inside of the house.

She stood up and put her hands on her hips. "I will not!" With a giggle, she faced Locke and Terra and shook her head. "What a fussy old man!"

"Please…" He begged, shaking his finger in the direction he was pointing. "Leave us! You've done enough damage for one day!"

"Well, all right," she said with a pout. "But I have all my paints set up, so I think I'm going to go paint a picture of the puppy. Come on, puppy!"

Before Shadow was able to protest, Relm walked inside with Interceptor and slammed the door. "Hoo boy…" The old man began with a chuckle toward Shadow. "Seems to like your dog…"

"So, what exactly did she mean by asking if we knew how to do magic 'too?'" Locke asked as he and Terra crossed their arms at the same time.

"Oh, she's just a child," he stated with a sigh. "Please, come in and have some tea as my apology. I just made some."

The three of them nodded as they walked inside. Locke looked around at the quaint little house and he had to smile. It reminded him of the house that he and his grandmother shared in Kohlingen when he was younger, including the scent of mint tea that always lingered in the air.

"I'm terribly sorry for being rude, but I just realized that I haven't introduced myself," he said as he went to the stove to take the kettle off the heat. "My name is Strago Magus, and that was my granddaughter, Relm Arrowny. When her parents died, I took her in and I've basically raised her since she was a baby. She's a bright girl and a very talented artist for her age, but she has a tendency to talk too much."

The door to the stairwell opened up and Relm squealed in delight, splattering paint from the paintbrush that was in her hands as she flailed her arms in excitement. "What a sweet puppy! You should see the painting so far! I think it's the best thing I've ever painted!" She wiped off the paint that hit the door and heard Interceptor bark from upstairs. "I'm coming, puppy!"

The four adults watched as she shut the door again then heard her run up the stairs. Strago sighed and shook his head as he handed the glasses of tea to Terra, Locke, and Shadow. "This is terrible. Sorry."

"No problem," Shadow said simply as he kept his gaze on the door to the stairwell. "The dog doesn't usually like people though."

"Please excuse her," Strago apologized, shrugging his shoulders as he turned back toward the cupboards for condiments. "Like I said, she's just young."

"Hmmm…" Locke said in thought as he put his glass to his lips. "So, you're aware of magic and Espers. Or at least your granddaughter is."

"She's just heard myths and stories about the War of the Magi, that's all," Strago explained, not convincing anyone. "This is just a back-water village on a tiny island on the eastern side of the world. We can tell you nothing about your Espers. I'm terribly sorry."

"I see…" Locke muttered under his breath as Strago turned around toward the tea kettle again. He leaned in toward Terra and Strago and stated the obvious, "There's something wrong here…"

"Ya think?" Terra said as she tapped her nails against the table. "She's young, yeah, but I think she proved to us that there is more to this town than meets the eye. Let's have a look around. Maybe we can find something else out."

"Agreed," Locke stated as he took one last sip of his tea and put the glass down. "Well, we've got to get going. Thanks for your time!"

"And for the tea!" Terra added and handed him her glass. "It was excellent."

"Of course," he replied with a shrug. "Sorry I couldn't have been more helpful!"

"Interceptor! Come!" Shadow bellowed with a whistle in the direction of Relm's room. After a few seconds, Relm walked downstairs with the dog, her paintbrush still in hand.

"But…" She started to whine with a pout. "I'm not done with the painting yet."

"Relm," Strago said calmly as he patted the young girl on the head. "Just use your imagination for the rest of it, okay?"

Her pout didn't wash off her face as she sighed and said, "Oh, all right…"

"Oh, I forgot to mention," Strago cried as they began to walk away from the house. "If you want to stay the night at the inn, just tell the innkeeper that you know me. I'm sure he'll give you a hell of a deal."

"Well, that good, because he basically asked for my firstborn when we went there earlier," Locke stated with a sarcastic smile and a nod. "Thanks, old man, we'll definitely take your advice."

Strago shut the door and Terra and Locke leaned in toward each other. "Now what?" Terra asked as Locke shrugged his shoulders. "They know about Espers, it's obvious, but how do we get them to confess?"

"Let's just stay the night here first and then we can seek out the elder of this town tomorrow or something," Locke suggested with a sigh. "There really isn't anything else we can do. I feel like we're doing the Empire's dirty work for them by trying to pry information out of this town."

"General Leo and Celes were going to look around the island too," Terra mentioned with a smile. "If we don't find out anything, I guess we can just meet up with him and see if they've had better luck."

"True," Locke agreed with a nod as they started to walk back over to the inn. _Then I'd like to have a little heart to heart talk with General Leo. Maybe ask him about the Clemix diamond and also if there's anything I can do for Rachel…_


	31. The Nightmare Begins

**This is another chapter that I really like. It happens pretty much immediately after chapter 29, just so you know...but it's not hard to figure out. Like I've said a million times, I like the chapters that I wrote a while ago. This one has probably been finished for a few months. I know I finished it up at school, and knowing I got out in the beginning of May and it's already July? Yep. It's been done for a while. It's kind of short, but it wouldn't have worked out if it was any longer. I get my point across and I like the way it worked out, so yay.**

**Now, about the next chapter. You might be waiting awhile...maybe. I have a few more hours before I have to go to work so I'm going to start on it now. I have a basic idea for it, but I might not even like the way that it'll turn out. If that's the case, I'll just post the four or so chapters after that...and those are the four chapters that are my favorite...and they're the ones that answer your questions and pretty much make the entire story what it is. :squee: I don't think it would work out so well if I posted them now...because there is a few weeks time between this chapter and "Vaughn's Next Order." Therefore, the next chapter will be a 'in game' chapter. It's going to be 'in game time' but no 'in game dialogue.' Ya know what I mean? Anyway...**

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**31. The Nightmare Begins**

Locke didn't waste a moment's time when he arrived at the Quantz hideout. Avoiding questions to why he looked more disheveled then usual and why his clothes were stained with blood, he stormed to his room and began packing up a few things.

_I can't tolerate this…_He thought as he unsheathed his dagger and inspected it closely, making sure that it was going to be sharp enough for what he wanted it for. He thought he would never see it again for the soldier tossed it into the woods by Kohlingen, but luckily he found it while walking back from the Patriarch's house. He nodded in approval at the knife, then sheathed it again. After a short pause, he walked to his dresser for a new change of clothes.

As he peeled off the shirt that he was wearing, he heard his door open and he cursed at himself for not locking it. Although it was Xane, Locke was not in the mood for dealing with anyone.

"Hey, so there you are! Vaughn was looking for you earlier because you were gone for a…while…Holy shit." Xane froze in his tracks when he noticed Locke's state of being, then quickly shut the door to prevent any other traveling ears to eavesdrop. "W-What happened? Where have you been?"

Locke didn't speak as he looked down at the stained shirt in his hands, slowly clenching his fists around the material before throwing it down on the floor. Xane eyed the shirt then ran up to Locke and grabbed him by the shoulder to look for wounds. He gaped at the gash on his arm, but Locke shrugged him off.

"I'm fine," he replied as he saw Xane prepare to cast a cure spell. "It's a nice thought, but that's not going to work this time. I'm not physically hurt besides my shoulder, but otherwise…"

"I don't like the way you said that, therefore I'm going to ask you again; what happened?" Xane's voice was stern as he studied Locke's face. The pain was crystal clear, so worry washed over Xane's face. "Something happened."

"No shit, Xane!" Locke called back as he whipped around and looked at the older treasure hunter. He grimaced and put his hand on his arm from pulling the skin when he turned.

"Then explain it to me!" Xane said as Locke opened the bottom drawer and pulled out a bottle of alcohol. "You leave to go on a hunt early this morning, then you come back extremely late with blood on your clothing and no wound except the one on your arm. There is no way that cut would pour blood on the front of your shirt and pants." He watched the younger man take a drink out of the bottle and grimace at the taste of it. "And now you're drinking again. I haven't seen you touch this shit in over a year. What's the occasion?"

"I need it right now," he replied as he drank about one fourth of the bottle in one gulp. Xane walked over to him, ripped the bottle out of his hands, and Locke reached for it. "Hey! What are you doing?"

Locke was surprised that Xane didn't throw the bottle through the window like he did the last time he started drinking, for Xane had the same look in his eye as he did then. Instead, he put it by his side and placed his hand on Locke's shoulder to prevent him from grabbing the bottle back. "Listen to me. In case you haven't noticed, I'm worried about you right now. Please, tell me what happened. Did you go to Kohlingen and see Rachel?"

With a shudder, Locke had a flashback of everything that happened; the sword going through her flesh, fluttering her eyes open and saying his name. The image burned in his brain, so he closed his eyes and put a hand on his forehead. To maintain his composure, he put one of his hands on the dresser for support.

"It was too late," he muttered under his breath as he held back his tears. With a sniff, he shook his head and looked up at the ceiling. "I was just too late."

"What are you talking about?" Xane asked, his voice becoming less patient as his state of worry grew.

"Rachel…" He trailed off and heard Xane take a few steps closer to him. "I…I was walking back here after the hunt that Vaughn sent me on, and then I saw that Kohlingen was under attack. I instantly thought of Rachel, so I went to see if she was okay. She…"

"Locke…" Locke put his hand up so Xane would stop talking and he could finish explaining.

"It was too late when I got there." He exhaled through his nose quickly as he thought about it. "The Baron was already dead and when I saw Rachel…" He bit his lip before he could continue. "She was killed right before my eyes. An Imperial soldier stuck his sword right through her stomach. She…never had a chance."

"It's not your fault," Xane said as Locke shook his head again. "None of it is. Stop torturing yourself over it."

"She remembered me," Locke added as he stared blankly out the window, and he heard Xane exhale. "Right at the last second, she said my name. Ya know, I'm curious to know if her memory returned at the last second of her life or if she actually began remembering things over the course of the year I was gone."

Locke turned toward Xane as if he wanted a comment on his statement, but he could tell that his friend didn't have the slightest idea. "Locke, I'm so sorry. I just don't know what to say."

"What if she remembered me several months ago?" He asked, partly to himself. "I mean, what if she looked around and realized that I wasn't there? What if she thought I abandoned her? What if…what if she thought I didn't care anymore?"

"I'm sure her father clarified things up with her if that did happen, but I guess we'll never be able to know," Xane said with a shrug and he walked over to Locke again.

"Yeah, I'm sure that he only said great things about me," Locke retorted sarcastically with a huff. "If she did get her memory back and her father expressed the wonderful feelings that he had toward me, I'm sure she cursed at herself and tried to forget me."

"You don't know that," Xane said to stop Locke's rambling. He put the bottle down on one of the shelves on Locke's wall before turning back to him. "But, you can't ask yourself these things. It won't do anything except drive you mad with curiosity."

"I need to get out of here," he stated suddenly, his voice frantic as he looked through the drawers. Xane watched as Locke threw random articles of clothing over his shoulder onto the floor in piles.

"What? Where are you gonna go?" Locke was surprised at how composed Xane's voice was, but he knew that he was only trying to calm down his emotions.

"I'm dealing with this once and for all," he stated simply as he pulled out a basic white tee shirt and put it on.

Xane narrowed his eyes at the younger man and took a few steps closer to him. "I don't like how you said that. What do you mean?"

Locke looked straight ahead as he clenched his fists by his side. "I'm going to Vector."

His voice was cold and it sent chills down Xane's spine as he heard the words. He heard the older man exhale in disbelief and saw his eyes go wide when he looked over his shoulder. "Locke, think about what you just said. Just going into Vector? That's suicide."

"There are worse things." He bit his tongue so hard to prevent the tears from falling that he began to taste blood. "I need to avenge Rachel, and that's the only way I'm going to be able to do it. I'm gonna find that son of a bitch that killed her and make him go through the same punishment."

"Yeah, great plan," Xane retorted, his voice heavy with sarcasm. "If you get three feet into Vector without getting killed, that's an accomplishment by itself. To clarify something that is obviously going on with the Empire, they no longer have a plan in who they're going to kill. They just go to a random town and attack its residents for no apparent reason. First the attack on Maranda the other day and now Kohlingen. If you walk into Vector, there is no reason to why they won't open fire on your ass; especially if you have your weapon out and ready and a look on your face that screams that you're out for blood."

"I can't go on knowing that she just died!" He shouted as he turned toward Xane. The frustrated look on Xane's face only infuriated him more as he gritted his teeth. "Going to Jidoor and having a night out with the boys isn't going to solve the problem this time. I left her for a _year_, Xane. A whole damn year! I should've been at her side to make sure that she was going to be okay, to make sure that I was there when her memory came back, but I wasn't! I was out trying to mend my life and make things better for myself!"

"Which you did!" Xane yelled back, causing Locke to blink in surprise. "You were doing fine! Sure, it took a while, but after some coaxing, you were cheerful again, your treasure hunting ability went through the roof, and you were just like you were when you first joined Quantz. You found yourself again."

Locke instantly calmed down and sighed at Xane's valid point, but he wasn't about to give up. Instead of replying right away, he turned back to his dresser and continued to sift through the clothing.

"Locke, don't go through with this," Xane said as he continued to persuade Locke's rash decision. "Again I'm gonna use this card, but it's true; Rachel wouldn't want you to do this for her. She wouldn't want you to throw away your life at her expense. Besides, she saved _your_ life last year."

"And I wasn't able to save hers today." Locke's voice cracked as he choked on a sob.

"Come on, think about this," he replied, halfway pleading. "You're going to toss everything that you have going for you right out the window. You did all that you could for her and I'm sure she's thankful for that."

Locke looked down at his hands and hung his head. Xane knew that he was getting to him, so he took another step forward. "Xane, please, don't try to change my mind. I'll never be able to forgive myself if I don't go through with this."

"Yeah, you'll never be able to forgive yourself because you won't walk out of it alive," Xane stated again, putting his hand on Locke's shoulder. "Also, how the hell are you going to get to Vector? You can't swim that far and I know for a fact that you don't like ships. You might as well face it that you have to stay here."

Shutting the drawer he was looking through, Locke looked back down at his blood stained hands. "Xane, what am I gonna do? I can't just sit here and do nothing. The last time I did that, it ended up in Rachel dying a year later."

"I know you don't want me to ask this question, but I'm going to," Xane said, shutting his eyes before speaking again. "What did you do with her?"

"I brought her to a house on the northern part of the continent," Locke replied, wiping his hands on his clothing, even though the blood was already dried. "I've heard rumors of a patriarch who was able to possess the power to do wonders with magic and herbal healing, so I sought him out. He said he would be able to preserve her until I could find a way to bring her back. I'm going to find the way, Xane. I promised her that I would protect her and I won't go back on my word."

"You really want to know my opinion?" Xane asked, Locke nodding in response. "You promised Rachel that you would look after her, so continue doing it. Look for a way to bring her back. There has to be a way."

"I hope so."

"I'll help you look," Xane said with a small smile. Locke narrowed his eyebrows at his friend and Xane gave him a reassuring nod. "I mean it. I'll ask Vaughn if there's anything that he can find and you and I will go after it, okay?"

"Really?" Locke asked quietly and Xane nodded again. "Wow, thanks, Xane. That means a lot to me. Thank you so much."

"Of course." Xane gave Locke another pat on the shoulder and held up the liquor bottle that was still in his hand. "This does mean that you can't go around drinking or threatening that you're going to go to Vector. That's not going to get you anywhere, you know that."

Xane handed Locke the bottle back and he put it on top of his dresser. "Yeah, I do know that. Rachel never liked drinking anyway. A casual glass of wine at a party, but that's about it."

"And another thing," Xane began with a shrug of his shoulders. "As hard as this may sound, don't try to think of her that often. Or if you do, don't make it verbal because it'll make things worse. We'll do what we can."

"I guess we should tell Vaughn that the diamond's now in the hands of the Empire, shouldn't we?" The color drained out of Xane's face and Locke blinked a few times. "Well, yeah, they raided the VanLente house, taking the diamond when they ran across it. It's worth a lot of money so I really don't blame them."

"The…Empire has the diamond?" Xane rubbed his face with the palm of his hand and Locke nodded. "Shit, I gotta tell Vaughn."

"Yeah, I figured," Locke said with a shrug. "We might as well tell him now."

"No," Xane replied sharply, putting his hands up to motion Locke to stay where he was. As he continued talking, he started to walk backward towards Locke's door. "I-I'll tell him. You can stay here and change. I don't think that Vaughn or the other Quantz guys would want to see you covered in blood. They would ask you all kinds of questions and right now we don't have time for that."

Before Locke could say anything, Xane bolted out the door and ran toward Vaughn's office. _What the hell is going on…_Locke thought to himself, scratching his chest. Determination washed over his features and he clenched his fists. _Rachel, I will find a way to bring you back to me…Please wait for me…_


	32. The Death Of Leo

**YAY! A five chapter update...AND my favorite part of the fic! YAYAYAY! You have no idea how happy I am to be posting these!**

**All right, it took me a while to figure out what to write for this chapter...but I think this part of the game is okay. It actually talks a lot about some upcoming chapters, so it worked out better than I planned. If there is something that Locke thinks in this chapter that makes you say "What the hell?" Don't worry, it'll be explained in the upcoming chapters. It was hard to write this chapter without spoiling anything. I actually had to stop myself from writing a few things. Oh well. Okay, here's this chapter!**

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**32. The Death Of Leo**

"General Leo," Terra whispered as she looked down at the freshly covered grave at the edge of Thamasa. Everyone was gathered around the grave with Terra in the center, absorbing what had happened not longer than a half hour prior. When Locke, Terra, Shadow, and Strago set out to find more information out about Espers, they stumbled across the Three Statues; the beginning source of all magic. Even though the ones that they found were only replicas, they still contained a strong power to them, which drew the Espers to the area. The Espers agreed to talk to the Empire, but when they arrived back in Thamasa, Kefka and several soldiers were waiting. Not only did Kefka turn the Espers into Magicite in a blink of an eye, but he also decided to show everyone his power. He was practically invincible, and the young General didn't stand a chance.

_Damn you, Kefka…_Locke thought as the vision of Kefka brutally murdering General Leo swept through his mind. There was a sparkle in Kefka's eyes after he killed the man and his laugh echoed through the town. _How can you simply kill a man who devoted his life to what he believed in..._

It was the first time in Locke's life where he felt pity for the death of a follower of the Empire, but he wasn't about to regret those feelings. _General Leo was different than other members of the army. Different since the first day I met him not long ago…_He thought as he remembered his first encounter with Leo. _He didn't want me harmed. He knew that I wasn't involved, so he let me go without question…_

Locke carefully etched the words "General Leo Christophe, Beloved General and Friend" on a stone and placed it at the head of the mound as a makeshift gravestone. He didn't know what to say, so he only watched as the young girl knelt down and placed some flowers on the mound of dirt.

Not wanting to see the pain that was on Terra's face, he looked to his side to see Celes. Her blonde hair gently whipped in the wind and an unreadable expression adorned her face. He could tell that she was gritting her teeth, yet he wasn't sure if she was doing the motion to refrain from crying or if she was just extremely angry from what happened. _Maybe both…_Locke thought as he studied her. She kept her eyes on the stone and Locke wished he knew what she was thinking.

He put his hand on her shoulder and with a sharp inhale, she shrugged him off. "Please, don't," she muttered, taming a loose strand of hair behind her ear. Even though Locke wasn't happy about how she was hiding why she went back to the Empire, he knew that he was still going to keep his promise and protect her. _Protecting her from physical harm I can still abide to, but I can't protect her from emotional pain…_

Terra stood up and rubbed her hands together to clean them. "People only seem to want power. It makes sense to why they're after me." Locke had to strain his hearing to understand what she was saying, and he even found himself taking a step closer to her. "I have enough power to kill them with a raise of my finger. Do they really want to be like me?"

"Terra," Locke said when he heard her voice break. _Here's another girl that I can't save from emotional pain…_His thoughts were discomforting to himself and he shook his head.

Without responding, she bowed her head and closed her eyes. "General Leo, I…I wanted to learn so much more from you…"

_I did as well…_Locke thought. Even though he felt that the questions he wanted to ask General Leo were selfish, he was generally upset about the man's death. _I wanted to know about the poison…If there was a cure or not. If…If Rachel could eventually be saved or if she has to spend the rest of her life in a peaceful sleep. Also, I wanted to ask him why Celes went back to the Empire…and…I wanted to clarify a few things that happened several weeks ago…_

_Was he just another innocent man who was wiped out by the Empire, or did he, too, have justifiable reasons for death? I…don't even know if he is dead…and now Leo can't straighten it out for me…_Silence fell through everyone as Locke held in his tears. Slowly exhaling, he clenched his fists until his knuckles were white. It was all he could do without punching a hole in something. _This is just too much…_

The sound of rustling bushes interrupted Locke's thoughts and everyone looked up. "What was that?" Strago asked as he grabbed Relm and pulled her closer to him for protection. The color washed out of Relm's face and her hands flew to her mouth.

Locke turned to see what she was looking at and caught a glimpse of something limping. "Interceptor!" He cried as Shadow's dog slowly made his way over to Relm. She let out a cry and bent over to start consoling the dog.

"What the hell happened?" Strago asked the dog; speaking to him like he was going to answer.

"That's a nasty wound," Locke said, getting on his knees to inspect the gash that started at Interceptor's collar and ran halfway down his back. The blood was still seeping out of the wound, but by the amount of dirt that was in it, it was inevitable that Interceptor rolled in the grass to try to stop it.

"Shadow…" Terra exhaled. She put her hand on Relm's back, who was now crying at the sight of the pitiful dog.

"We not only lost Leo, but Shadow, too," Locke stated with a shake of his head. Slamming one of his fists in the ground, he continued with, "Curse the Empire! What the hell is wrong with Kefka!"

"Locke!" Terra yelled as she put her hands over Relm's ears. "Please, not around Relm."

"I'm sorry, I just…" He was so frustrated that words weren't coming out. They simply clustered together and he tripped over his sentence. Sighing to regain his composure, he took off his bandana and tried to wipe the blood and debris off Interceptor's wound. "We need to wash this to do a better job, but for now this'll have to do."

"Maybe it's just because I'm used to being around men who's hearts are made out of steel," Celes began to say as she played with her fingers, "but he was so gentle. Locke and Terra, before you two showed up, he was so kind to me."

"What are we going to do?" The tone of Relm's voice was full of devastation, and Locke felt his heart sink. She trailed her fingers between Interceptor's ears, receiving whines of gratitude from the wounded dog. "Are you sure that Shadow…"

With the back of her free hand, she wiped the tears away, not wanting to finish the rest of her sentence. Although Locke believed that since Interceptor was in such bad shape, Shadow probably fared worse, he didn't want to tell that to her. _Especially if the Imperial Army still coats their weapons with the kind of poison that kills instantly…_Locke thought as he slowly stood up.

"Well, I don't think that it's a good idea to stay in one spot," he said, holding the bloodstained bandana in his hand. "I'm assuming that the quicker we get out of here the better off we'll be."

"I'll go with you," Relm informed him quickly, grabbing onto his arm her with her tiny hands. "I don't want to stay here anymore. Grandpa, let's go with them. Please?"

Strago hesitated, so Terra nodded her head. "It is your decision, but you are welcome to travel with us if you would like to."

"I'm not sure about that, but we'll see," Strago said, looking down to see his granddaughter attempt a smile. "That's a big decision to make, Relm. This is also something that I would need to think about and not rush my thinking process."

"Well, sorry to rush you, but we can't afford to give you a lot of time to battle with it. Who knows what the Empire's next move is going to be." Locke bowed his head and exhaled. "Now I'm worried about Edgar and the others. We haven't seen them since we were in Vector. I wonder if they've found out anything that would be useful to us."

"I wish I could say they were safe…" Terra added. "I mean, if they were in the way of Kefka when he escaped his jail cell, anything could've happened to them."

"Yeah," Locke huffed, rolling his eyes. "I'm assuming that he left a war path behind him. Who's to say what happened to them." With another sigh, he looked back down at Interceptor. "Well, we should probably clean him up and then start to head back toward the southern continent."

"We can go back to our house," Strago said and began to lead the way.

Locke glanced over his shoulder to see that Terra and Celes both hesitated and kept their heads pointed toward the grave. He turned back to them and as soon as Celes saw his movement, she shook her head and began to walk after Strago, Relm, and Interceptor.

"Celes," he said as she passed him, but she didn't break her stride. _It must be too hard for her to talk about it…the Empire has betrayed her once again…_Terra looked up at him then adverted her gaze back to the grave again. "Are you going to be okay?"

"Um, I think so," she stated, exhaling the breath that she had been holding. "It's just that…He approached me when we were on our way here and we had a wonderful conversation. He was the only one who seemed to understand me and I wish he could've told me more about who I am. It was the first time that I was able to feel truly comfortable in the presence of the Empire. Actually, it was the first time I have been able to feel truly comfortable in a long time." Tilting her head up so she could look at Locke in the eyes, she continued. "I look at him and then I look at Kefka or Gestahl, and it makes me think; what was a man like General Leo doing with those two? He was the complete opposite of them."

"When I first met Celes, she told me that Gestahl never used to be like this," Locke explained. "She said that he used to be just like Leo, but when Kefka joined, he slowly started to turn into the man that we all know and hate today. Kefka has some kind of power over Gestahl, making him only a puppet who carries out his wishes. Leo has always been loyal and faithful to Gestahl, which is why he probably stuck with the Empire. He wanted to see if it was possible to change it back to what it was before."

Terra nodded her head and the two of them started to walk toward Strago and Relm's home. "I can't stop but wonder just how far Kefka is going to go. Is he going to become too strong for Gestahl to control? What'll happen then?"

"Locke, Terra!" The two of them turned toward the sound of the voice to see Setzer, Edgar, Sabin, Cyan, and Gau walking into town. Although Locke was disappointed that his conversation with Terra was cut short, he was thankful to see everyone. Edgar shook hands with Locke when he reached them. "I'm so thankful to see you're all okay."

"Same to you," Locke said, sighing in relief. "We weren't sure if anything happened in Vector or not."

"Well, we've been had!" Setzer exclaimed and threw his hands up in the air. "We officially know that the Emperor is nothing but a liar!"

Locke raised an eyebrow at the gambler's sentence and saw that Terra had the same look on her face. "Did…something happen in Vector?"

"Not really…" Sabin said, biting his lip and looking at the others for more information.

Cyan chuckled and gave Edgar a pat on the back. "Thanks to Edgar, we escaped before anything bad happened…"

"Oh really?" Locke asked as he crossed his arms. "For some reason, that doesn't surprise me, but way to go, Edgar!"

"You're blowing it out of proportion." Edgar tossed his head to get his hair out of his face then shrugged. "I got to know the gal who brought us tea. I talked to her a little bit later and after a while, she just blurted out the whole crooked plan."

The laughter that Edgar tried to keep in throughout his explanation finally escaped with his final words. Locke cracked a smile and shook his head. "Like I said, it doesn't surprise me."

"So, in other words…you finally hit pay dirt, eh?" Sabin asked with a playful nudge to his brother's chest.

Edgar shook his finger at Sabin and made a clicking sound with his tongue. "Watch your mouth, Sabin! There happens to be ladies present! I was a perfect gentleman."

"And what's your definition of 'perfect gentleman?'" Locke countered, not believing the fact that Edgar was able to get information from a woman without a shred of sweet talking. Edgar didn't respond. Instead, a sheepish smile crept on his face, causing Locke to scoff. "I knew it!"

Before anyone was able to say anything else, Celes flew the door open and ran outside to see everyone, Relm and Strago not far behind. "Oh, thank the goddesses you're all safe."

"Celes?" Sabin said, his jaw dropping at the sight of the general. "We were wondering what happened to you!"

"Yeah, don't worry about it," she told him as she looked at her feet.

Ignoring the conversation that Celes and Sabin were having, Edgar walked over to where Terra was standing and put his arm around her shoulder. "Not to change the subject here, but what's wrong, Terra? You look like the world just ended."

Terra opened her mouth like she was about to say something, then closed it again and bowed her head. Edgar looked up toward Locke, who changed his smile into a melancholy frown. "General Leo's gone. Kefka did him in."

"Sir Leo? Gone?" Cyan cried, his eyes going wide with each word he said. Locke, Terra, and Celes all nodded and Cyan shook his head. "Oh my word. What a waste. He truly was their finest soldier."

"Well then," Edgar said as he removed his arm from Terra and grew serious again. "That certainly is an unexpected turn. I've heard many things about General Leo and he definitely was much different than many other generals."

"I learned everything from him," Celes piped up, sadness in her eyes. "When I started to make my way up in the army, they teamed me up with General Leo. We went to the same locations, tried to investigate the same things…He really taught me everything that I know. Now he's gone. I don't…know what to do."

Locke was surprised that she came out and said that for it was very unlike Celes to admit that she was lost. _Is that why she went back to the Imperial Army? _He asked himself, itching his earlobe in thought.

"I guess that means that we need to rethink our plans." Edgar gestured to the exit of the town. "Let's return to the airship. It's parked to the north and shouldn't take a long time to get there."

Before anyone was able to take a step, Strago gently tapped Locke on his shoulder. "I don't mean to intrude, but may I accompany you? I have thought about it and realized it would be best for my sanity to help you out. You did save my granddaughter's life, so I feel I owe my life to you."

"Who're you?" Edgar asked, making a face and raising an eyebrow.

"Down boy," Locke quipped with a smile. "He's one of this town's citizens. We met him when we first came to this town."

"He's descended from the mage warriors of yore," Terra added, breaking her silence. "I think he can be a big help."

Seeing the quizzical look on the young king's face, Strago took a step forward. "We must expect the Empire to flex its new-found muscle soon. From everything that happened, it's safe to say that Kefka is now Gestahl's man in command."

"Me too!" Relm cried as she stood between Strago and Edgar. Grabbing her grandfather's sleeve, she began to bounce on her toes with excitement.

"I don't think so, Relm. It will be too dangerous." Strago told her firmly. She turned around and pouted at him at the same time that Sabin burst into laughter.

"Yeah, right, kid!" He said through his laughter. "Trying to outwit a psychotic man is not for kids."

"What?" She shrieked and stood on her toes so she would be a little taller. She only came up to the middle of Sabin's chest, but her attitude made it seem like she was five feet taller than him. With a poke to his shoulder, she looked over to Locke and Terra. "Who is this puffed up aerobics instructor, anyway?"

"Speaking of being outwitted," Edgar pointed out, receiving an amused look from Sabin.

"You've got a point." Bending over, he looked Relm straight in the eye. "Kid's got quite a lip! I've never seen such a short smartass."

"Aacck!" She puckered her lips in anger and narrowed her eyes at him. "I'm gonna paint your portrait if you don't behave!"

"You better shut your mouth, Sabin!" Locke warned as Terra and Strago rushed to separate the two of them.

"Um, okay…" Sabin said, utterly confused to what just happened. Terra slowly took her hands off of his arms to make sure that he wasn't going to say anything else to Relm, then exhaled.

"Anyway, like I was saying before I was so rudely interrupted," Relm said, shooting a glare at Sabin before turning to her grandfather. "I really want to go, grandpa! If you leave me here, I'll be all by myself!" Her pout transformed into a sly smile and she tapped her finger against her chin. "Wait, now that I think about it, that might not be such a bad thing! I'll have the house all to myself! I can stay up late, have ice cream for breakfast—"

"All right all ready!" Strago exclaimed as he clasped his hand over Relm's mouth. "If you insist…"

"That's better," she replied, a proud smile on her face. "I knew you'd give in."

"That's settled, so let's go!" Sabin clapped his hands together and they all started to walk out of town.

Locke considered saying something to Terra or Celes, but he wasn't sure what he would say to either of them. _General Leo had an influence on both of their lives, so what the hell can I say to console them and make them feel better? I wish I could've asked him some things. That would certainly make me feel better…I was supposed to have questions answered when I joined the Returners, but here I am; without information and still confused to what happened in Jidoor that day…_


	33. Vaughn's Next Order

**Okay, yay...these next four chapters are my favorite in the fic, and I have been impatiently waiting to post these. All of your questions will be answered...about pretty much everything. I've had these done for quite some time...and I've edited them and rewrote them a million times, so they're exactly the way I want them to be. That's enough talking...I want you to read!**

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**33. Vaughn's Next Order**

Locke quickly walked to Vaughn's office, stopping outside when he saw Xane leaning against the wall with his arms across his chest. He had one foot flat on the floor and the other rested with the heel against the wall, and he was quickly shaking it as he stared straight at the wall on the opposite side of the hallway. His face was so still that he looked almost as if he was in a trance as he waited. It was early in the morning and Locke wasn't sure why Vaughn had them wake up at such an hour and in such a hurry.

"Hey, Xane," Locke greeted the older man as Xane broke out of his trance and nodded back. Locke looked around for a second to make sure that no one would overhear their conversation, then continued. "So do you have any idea what the hell this is all about?"

"No, I don't," he admitted as he stood up on both feet again. The sincere and worried look in his eyes proved to Locke that he was telling the truth and was curious to know what was going on as well. "This is the strange thing, too. Usually I know what Vaughn is up to, but he's kept quiet about this thing. I'm assuming that this kept him up all night as well."

Locke frowned and, with his voice coated in sarcasm, said, "Well, if it kept him awake all night, that would explain why he sent someone to wake us up. It's not like _our_ sleep matters or anything." Looking at his watch, Locke saw that it was already six am, the time that Vaughn ordered them to be in his office. "Well, it's time. Is he already in his office?"

"I'm pretty sure that he is," Xane stated as he faced the heavy wooden door and held up his hand to knock. Before he followed through, he hesitated and turned toward Locke again. "Do you think we should just knock? Usually Vaughn is on time with things so I just walk in. However, I have a funny feeling about this whole situation."

"I don't want him to be pissed at us," Locke said with a shrug. "You're right though. This is very unlike him. I mean, it seems like lately, every time I go into his office he's unorganized, frantic, and looks like he's hardly gotten any sleep. I wonder what's going on with him." Xane remained silent for a minute and looked down at his feet. Locke furrowed his forehead as he studied the older man. "Xane, are you sure you don't have a clue?"

Putting his hand on the doorknob, Xane opened the door without responding to Locke or even knocking. Vaughn whipped his head up from his desk in surprise, knocking over the ink well that was by his right hand. He cursed as the ink poured all over the letter he was composing and gave both men a disapproving frown. With a sigh, he held up the piece of paper and let the excess ink run down and drip onto the lacquered wood.

"I told him he shouldn't barge in without knocking," Locke said quickly, trying to redeem himself. Vaughn's look didn't soften and when he looked over at Xane, he noticed he was giving him the same look. "Sorry."

"Come in," Vaughn stated as he put the paper back down on the desk on the puddle of ink that covered his desk. He groaned as he searched through his drawers to find something to clean up the mess. "Thank you for coming so early this morning and on such short notice."

Locke scoffed and shook his head as he watched Vaughn. "You're making it sound like we walked four miles to get here. We rolled out of bed and walked down the hall. Besides, it's not like we had a choice in the matter."

"Anyway, Vaughn," Xane began as he walked over to the chairs in front of Vaughn's desk, cutting off Locke's sarcasm. As the older man started to sop up the spilled ink with a towel, Locke sighed, made his way over to the other chair, and sat down. "What _is_ so important that you made us wake up extremely early?"

"Well, I guess I have to say that it's something that neither of you are going to be happy about," he admitted with a frustrated sigh. He looked at Xane then slowly turned to look at Locke, studying them and waiting for a response. "Fine, I'll be bluntly honest; you're both going to be pissed."

"Meaning?" Locke asked, his face deadpanned. That was a phrase that he had never heard Vaughn say before. _If he knows it's gonna piss us off, then why is he going to say it? _He thought as he tapped his toe on the inside of his shoe.

"Vaughn, is this something that can be mentioned while Locke is here?" Xane lowered his voice, but since Locke was two feet away, he was able to hear clearly.

Locke turned his head toward Xane slowly, looking between Vaughn and Xane, offended that neither of them were looking at him. "Hey guys, in case you haven't noticed, I'm right here. Care to share with me what you're talking about?"

Both men ignored his question and Locke huffed. _I don't know what the hell is going on with the two of them lately…_He thought, angrily drumming his fingers against his thigh.

"After some research, we have finally found out what has happened to the Clemix Diamond since the attack in Kohlingen." He paused, giving both men a chance to let his statement sink in. Xane exhaled and Locke chuckled in disbelief. "It's been in—"

"You've gotta be kidding me," Locke interrupted as he leaned back in his seat. Vaughn shot him a glare, but he shrugged it off and kept talking. "You can't be bringing this up. Not now."

"It's been in the hands of the Empire for the last few weeks," he continued, ignoring Locke's outburst. He wiped his hands with a cloth as his young employee stewed in his seat in complete disbelief that he would even bring this up. "They have it in Jidoor, which seems to be their headquarters for the time being."

"Why aren't they in Vector?" Xane asked as he rested his chin in his hand. "What the hell possessed them to stay in Jidoor of all places?"

"A simple explanation," Vaughn stated as he continued to wipe down his desk. Locke looked up and continued to give him a death glare as he spoke. "There is a very wealthy painter who lives there now. He actually is the one who bought over the VanLente property several years ago."

"Spare me," Locke spat out through clenched teeth. Just hearing Rachel's family name was enough to make his heart sink in his chest. "Besides, a painter moving into the biggest house on the western continent has nothing to do with why the Empire took over Jidoor.

"If you would hold your tongue and let me finish my explanation instead of interrupting me mid-sentence, you would comprehend where I'm going with this story." By the tone in Vaughn's voice, Locke could tell he was stepping on his patience. _Mentioning Rachel when I've only gotten about three hours of sleep is enough to make me crack…_He thought as Vaughn's eyes burned into his own. After a moment of the two of them glaring at each other, Vaughn's eyes softened and he calmed down. "Moving right along then. The painter, Owzer, has been making quite a few under the table deals with the higher ranking members of the Empire—mainly Gestahl—for quite some time. Due to these side jobs, he has become extremely rich and famous."

"So?" He continued to challenge as he began tapping his foot.

"_So_, Gestahl asked Owzer to stay in Vector for a few months to draw his portrait while his finest troops reside in his mansion to protect everything in his house," Vaughn continued. The look on Locke's face proved that his explanation wasn't enough to convince him to go out looking for the diamond and Xane put his forehead in his hand. "Unbeknownst to Owzer, there were secret meanings hidden in why Gestahl wanted him out of Jidoor and have his troops move in. You see, Owzer prefers to paint and sculpt in a private area where it is quiet, so he has a secret basement that only he knows the entrance to. With a little gold incentive, he agreed to let Gestahl know the way down. Gestahl told him that it would be in case things go awry, but he really kept the diamond down there."

"I just don't understand why they just don't keep it in Vector," Xane mentioned with a shrug of his shoulders. "There are enough soldiers there to protect it and Gestahl wouldn't have had to go through all that bullshit. It seems as though he's trying to make everything harder."

"It's not at Vector because, as painful as it is to say this, the Emperor is a very smart man. In case you haven't realized it, the diamond has been in the hands of the Empire since the attack on Kohlingen, and we _just_ found out about it. By them keeping it hidden in Jidoor, word never reaches our ears, thus keeping the diamond out of our hands and in their own."

A revelation sparked in Locke's mind and he sat up straight, startling the other two men. "So you're saying that the raid on Kohlingen a few weeks ago was basically because of the diamond? Son of a bitch."

"Unfortunately, yes, that is exactly what I'm saying," Vaughn said as he inspected his ink stained hands. Locke looked down at his feet and shook his head again. "Several years ago, Gestahl hired a new man. He's strong, powerful, and that bastard craves power. It's suspected that he is more power hungry than Gestahl himself, but I find that pretty hard to believe. Well anyway, it's rumored that he was the one who ordered the troops to poison the guards several years ago when VanLente wanted to put the diamond out on display."

"Rachel's birthday party," Locke stated, shaking his head in disbelief.

"Yes," Vaughn confirmed gently as he folded his hands on his desk. "Fortunately, as we all know, that plan failed, but of course the Emperor isn't one to give up easily. When they discovered that VanLente and his daughter went into hiding, they began looking for them. After a long search, they heard of two places where they could be hiding. Guess which two cities they were."

Xane exhaled as he shook his head. "Maranda and Kohlingen."

"Correct," Vaughn said, watching Locke look off to the side. "They attacked Maranda and when they didn't find anything there, the second wave of Imperial troops went off to Kohlingen and attacked there. Now, do we really want this diamond in the hand of these kinds of people? No. That's where you two come in."

"So, you're basically telling us to turn ourselves into the Empire by waltzing up to headquarters and asking for the diamond?" The sarcasm dripped heavily off of Locke's words and he knew he was continuously trying Vaughn's patience. "Yeah, okay, 'cause that'll work."

Xane leaned forward in his seat and rested his forearms on his knees. "To come at it in a non-smart ass way, it is really risky. Locke actually does have a point buried somewhere in his statement. That place will be crawling with troops and soldiers. We'll be lucky if we can get twenty feet into the town without getting shot or arrested. Oh, not to mention the fact that if Gestahl's finest troops are there, you know damn well that's where Leo will be stationed. I feel that my life would be less complicated if I could stay away from him at all costs."

"Xane, I expected this kind of reaction from Locke, but not from you. You know that we need to get that diamond out of there," Vaughn repeated slowly, enunciating every word. That was enough for Xane to shut his mouth, but Locke wasn't about ready to stay quiet.

"What the hell is that supposed to mean?" He spat out, noticeably offended. "Are you saying that I'm more likely to overreact because I have a personal vendetta against the empire?"

"I think we all have problems with the Empire," Xane stated calmly as Locke tried not to explode. "You'd be surprised."

Locke scoffed again and looked up at the ceiling. "Well, I wouldn't be aware of the problems that you two have been having with the Empire because you keep everything from me. Does this have something to do with the secret meetings that you two have been having lately?"

"It means that you should mind your own damn business," Xane retorted as he faced Locke. "Vaughn's right. I shouldn't be giving him a hard time about it, but I do have my reasons."

"Well, whatever, that's fine, but you can't expect _me_ to go after it," he said to Vaughn as he stood up and clenched his fists at his sides. "Not after what happened to Rachel. Especially since I have just been informed of how that diamond is what adjacently killed her."

Vaughn folded his hands on his desk and calmly looked up at Locke, who was now slightly red in the face with anger. "You're a member of this group, are you not? Therefore, you will do as you are told and not argue."

"I thought I always was able to have a choice of doing a mission or not," Locke huffed as he put his hands on Vaughn's desk. "I've never been forced to do one, therefore I'm declining it. I can't believe the thought would even enter your mind that I would leap at this opportunity."

"I never thought you would 'leap' into this one, nor did I expect you do. However, I'm able to change my mind and the rules whenever I want, so you don't get a choice in this time," he clarified as he watched Locke's anger rise even more. "You and Xane are the best two I've got in Quantz, and believe me when I say I'm going to need the both of you. I'm not going to take any chances by sending anyone else. In case something happens to one of you, the other will be able to come back and tell me."

"But you're taking chances by sending both Xane and I?" Locke could see Vaughn's patience dissolving once again, but he was going to do everything in his power to get out of going to Jidoor. "Give it up with this damn diamond! Find something else for your craving of riches."

"Locke, this has nothing to do with riches," Vaughn clarified as he cracked his knuckles, Locke wincing at each pop that was emitted. "Again, I reiterate that you shouldn't be arguing with me about this in the first place."

Completely letting Vaughn's statement go through one ear and out the other, Locke just about blew up. "Vaughn, Rachel just died because of that diamond!"

Vaughn stood to his feet and slammed his fist against his desk as hard as he could, causing Locke to jump backward. "And if you don't get that diamond out of the hands of the people who murdered her, _more_ will die!"

"What are you talking about?" Before Vaughn was able to answer, Locke looked over Xane, who didn't look alarmed. _If I didn't know any better, I'd say he knew what was going on…_Locke thought as he watched Xane eye the floor and shake his head. When Locke looked at Vaughn again, the man calmly sat down and remained silent. "Why do I get the feeling that I'm the only one in this room who is missing a crucial point to this thing?"

"I want you to in just a few minutes," Vaughn said as he waved Locke out of the room with his hand. "Let me speak to Xane for a minute before you depart."

Locke wasn't one to ever complain about a hunt, but he felt as though this mission was more than just for the diamond. He knew that Xane and Vaughn were both keeping a vital reason of why they wanted to get the diamond secret and it bothered him. "Why can't you tell _me_? I'm risking my life by going to Jidoor too."

"Just go, Locke," Xane said with an empathetic nod and turned away. Locke watched as he put his head in his hand, and he had to listen carefully to hear what he was saying. "I'll be out there in a few minutes."

"What's with this diamond?" Locke was calmer now than before, but he still continued to pry. Vaughn sat back down in his seat as he pointed in the direction of the door again.

"Don't try my patience," he replied calmly and slowly. "Now, wait outside."

With a sigh in defeat, Locke gathered up his anger and stormed out of Vaughn's office. After he shut the door, he carefully looked down the hallway to see if anyone was around. When he noticed he was alone, he pressed his ear against the door to find out if he could hear what Xane and Vaughn were discussing. Unfortunately, the wood was too thick and he couldn't hear anything, frustrating him further. He hated that secrets were being held from him.

Instead of punching a hole through the wall, he paced in front of the door and waited for Xane to walk out. _I know Vaughn won't answer anything that I have to ask, but maybe Xane'll explain things a little further…_He thought as he felt his blood boil.

Locke considered himself to be a very well tempered man, but when it came to the Empire and Rachel, he became more passionate about his feelings and tended to express them more. Inhaling a shaky breath, he started to think of what happened at Kohlingen. Since he brought her to the Patriarch, he had visited her almost every day. Although there wasn't anything that he could do for her at the time being, he just wanted to be near to her. The thought of her lying in a strange house all alone made him feel guilty, so he would steal out of the hideout whenever he could.

He didn't realize he had stopped pacing until the door of Vaughn's office flew open. Xane walked out and after he carefully shut the door, he shook his head at Locke.

"I'm sorry, man," he apologized, putting his hand on Locke's shoulder. "I know this must be hard for you—"

"No, you don't know," he replied, his voice stern as he glared at Xane. "It's not just the Rachel thing either. I mean, yeah, that's the majority of it, but I feel like I'm walking into a trap. How did Vaughn find out the information about that damn jewel anyway? It's not like a little bird whispered it in his ear."

"I…I can't say."

Locke frowned at Xane, for that was not the answer he wanted to hear. "Xane, what the hell is going on? You know and I don't, and I hate being left out of things like this. Particularly when I'm going to go on a hunt that's so risky. Tell me _now_."

"I can't tell you, Locke!" He cried out as he turned away. "I'm not allowed to. If Vaughn wants to tell you, then he will. Who knows, if all goes well and we get this diamond back to him, he just might tell you."

"Well, that's just bullshit!" He exclaimed, not regretting the fact that he was speaking loudly. "What's in it for me this time? Or you? Huh? Nothing. This is just us doing a mission for Vaughn, for some reason that I don't even know."

"This is a _recon_ mission," Vaughn validated with a shake of his head in defeat. "All right? This is a recon mission for Vaughn. That's all you need to know, understood? Any more arguments and I'll go by myself."

"Good," Locke retorted as he crossed his arms over his chest. "I'll keep arguing then because I sure as hell don't want to go after that damn diamond. Vaughn is just like Rachel's father; has that lust for greed."

Locke turned on his heel to walk back to his room, but Xane quickly grabbed him by the arm to stop him. "You know that's not it at all. Greed has nothing to do with this situation when it comes to Vaughn. To be honest, it's anything but greed. Besides, do you _really_ want me to go by myself? I'll get caught for sure if I do that and that is something that Vaughn does not want to see happen. Nor I for that matter. Therefore, I suggest that you grow up, get over yourself, and come with me to Jidoor."

Gritting his teeth, Locke nodded his head for he knew that Xane was right. "All right, fine. I'll go with you," he stated quietly as he looked down at the floor. "But, I just have an extremely bad feeling about this entire situation."

"So do I, Locke," Xane replied as he started to walk toward the exit of the hideout. "So do I."

"Wait a second then," he cried out as he caught up to Xane. "If you're having bad vibes about it, why are you going?"

"Do you really want to argue with Vaughn when he has his heart set on something?" Locke shook his head and Xane put his hand against the wall to reveal the door. "Therefore, that's why I'm going. You don't even know the reason why I'm scared. To be honest, I'm terrified."

"I would know if you would stop hiding things from me." Instead of giving Locke some kind of verbal response, Xane only opened the door and gestured him to go out first. Locke obeyed, then decided not to ask anymore questions about it.


	34. Jidoor

**This chapter isn't very long, but it wouldn't work out if it was any longer. It's just long enough to get my point across, blah blah blah. (I don't want long Author's Notes because I'm too excited!) **

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**34. Jidoor**

"Holy shit," Locke whispered when he and Xane could see the small town of Jidoor. They both knelt down behind some shrubbery outside of town and had a good look around. Soldiers were stationed all over; by doors and buildings, around the perimeter of the town, and the ones who weren't standing were pacing on guard. The citizens carefully weaved through the guards, walking on eggshells so they wouldn't do anything wrong and risk the chance of getting killed. "Vaughn wasn't kidding when he said Jidoor was their new headquarters. Damn, the place looks like Vector."

Xane turned his head and noticed that there wasn't an area of ten feet that wasn't guarded. "Now, how the hell are we going to get in? Actually, how are we going to sneak in unnoticed is the question I should be asking. I have an idea, but I'm not sure if I want to go through with it."

"What's that?" Locke asked as Xane shrugged his shoulders. "O…kay, if you didn't want to say it, then why did you bring it up?"

"Well, I was thinking that I could perform a vanish spell on both of us, but I haven't done a spell like that in ages. Not since my training days," he stated as he looked down at his hands. "I'm not sure if I'd be able to make it work on myself, yet alone on two of us at the same time. Oh, yeah, the tiny fact that I'm not sure how long it'll last is probably my biggest concern. I don't want to get halfway into town and have it wear off."

"Okay, well, since I don't want to get caught and I really would like to avoid magic at all costs, I guess we can just walk in and say we need supplies or something," he said as he started to walk closer to the town. "That way we won't look too conspicuous."

Xane's arm reached out and grasped Locke by the shoulder to push him back down and stop him from going further, causing a loud rustling from the shrubbery at the same time as he landed ungracefully. "No, we can't do that either."

"Why not?" He asked as he removed Xane's arm from his shoulder and brushed off his clothing with his hands. He could see several soldiers looking around from town, trying to figure out what the rustling was from.

"Just…trust me on this," Xane replied as he fixated his eyes on one of the men. He was dressed more elegantly than the soldiers he was talking to, so Locke assumed he had a higher rank. "We can't do this without some kind of disguise. I'd…_We'd_ get caught."

"Well, it's good to know that you have such a positive outlook on this situation," he said sarcastically, although he wasn't confident either. He saw Xane swallow then start to chew on the inside of his cheek in thought, so he pointed to the man. "Who's that?"

"The one on the left side of town? Oh, that would be General Leo," he stated with a nervous exhale. "He's the one that we have to look out for."

"Only Leo?"

Locke and Xane whipped around to the sound of the voice that appeared behind them and saw a young woman. Locke felt the color drain from his face as he looked at her appearance. She had blonde hair, blue eyes, and even though she was trying to be stern, her features retained softness to them. _Oh goddesses, it's a replica of Rachel…_He thought as he looked away from her. _It's as if it's a ghost of her…_

After a second, he was able to look up at her again and look at her closer. She was rather tall for a woman, but he wasn't sure if it was just an illusion; she was wearing high heels and she was also standing on a higher elevation than he and Xane. Her long blonde hair whipped in the gentle wind as she placed her hands on her hips. Locke watched her hands to make sure that she wasn't going to attack them, and his eyes settled on the rather large sword that was hanging at her side. He looked over at Xane, who didn't look frightened at all. _As a matter of fact, he looks happy to see her…_

"What about me?" She asked, raising her eyebrows and motioning with her hands as she spoke. "I can do just as much damage as Leo, you know."

"Well, I'll be damned," Xane stated pleasantly with a smile as he stood up to look at the younger woman. Her face softened and melted into a smile as they locked eyes. "Hello, Celes."

"Hi," she replied, looking off to the side a little bit. Locke raised an eyebrow at the two of them and crossed his arms. He wasn't sure how to react, so he figured he better observe what was going on before making a rash decision.

"It's been a while," he stated as he reached his arms out for a hug. "Come here, you."

"You know that I can't," she said with a hesitation as she crossed her arms across her chest. Even though it was a relatively warm day outside, Locke could see her arms break out into goosebumps. She rubbed her shoulders with her hands as she continued to speak. "You shouldn't even be here. It's way too dangerous. Especially for you."

"I'm fully aware of that, but you know me. I just have to leap into the fray when I get the chance." He playfully shrugged and his smile only continued to widen. "So, you look good. How've you been?"

"Never been better," she stated confidently. Locke noticed that she kept looking toward town, so Locke turned around and saw that some of the guards had their eyes on them as well. _She's part of the Imperial army, isn't she?_ He thought as his heart rate began to rise. "Even though I haven't heard from you in quite some time, I think I can still guess why you're here."

"Your guess is probably right," Xane replied with a chuckle. Locke sent him a glare, but Xane ignored him and kept his attention on the girl. "However, now that I think that since I'm looking at you, I'm going to have a hard time getting into Jidoor, aren't I?"

She shook her head and made a clicking sound with her tongue in disappointment. "You're not going to be able to get into town, sorry. I can't abide by that wish. You should've thought twice before you came here, Xane. Knowing that we're stationed here, Gestahl wouldn't have sent his troops without Leo or I. It's even worse for you because Gestahl sent us both here to keep a close eye on things. By coming here, you were just asking to get caught."

"How is Leo doing, anyway?" Xane asked as the young woman's eyes sparkled and her cheeks flushed slightly. "Uh oh. Don't tell me that there is something going on with you and Leo."

"Not exactly," she said with a slight shrug. "We're just stationed at the same place all the time, so he and I have gotten to be close. As friends! Nothing more, I promise."

"Celes," Xane warned as his face fell into a frown. "He's way too old for you. Don't even think about initiating anything with him."

"It's a business relationship," she clarified, her tone matching his. "I wouldn't get involved with him. You should know better than to think of something like that."

"Ya know, it might just be my own observation," Locke started nervously as he looked at how other guards were starting to walk toward them. "But I don't think now is the proper time to be catching up with each other. Let's get out of here."

"You're not off the hook yet, missy," Xane said to the young woman, shaking his finger at her, causing her to chuckle. He turned toward Locke and nodded at him. Before they were able to take a single step, the woman grabbed Xane by the arm.

"Nice try," she snapped as she whistled for the other guards. Locke's heart skipped a beat in fear as he watched her motions; it was as if her sweet façade was instantly transformed into a soldier's demeanor. "You just got here! Don't even think about leaving yet."

"Celes!" Xane cried out as she dug her sharp nails into his arm to get a better grip on him. The guards rushed over and restrained Xane so she could get a good look at him. "What are you doing?"

"It's called my job," she replied smugly as a few guards grabbed onto Locke as well. "Remember, I haven't seen you in a long time. Quite a few things have changed since you've been gone."

"What is she talking about?" Locke asked as Xane huffed and shrugged his shoulders. Before Locke was able to say anything else, he saw that General Leo saw the commotion and started in their direction.

"Oh, shit," Xane muttered under his breath as he noticed the man. He sent a glare to the young woman and she simply gave him an innocent smile.

"What's going on?" Before the General got any closer, the woman simply pointed to Xane and let out a short laugh. "What is it, Celes?"

"Look at this one, Leo," she told him, motioning to the guards to move Xane a few more feet forward. She tapped the toe of her shoe against the ground and Locke could tell that she was proud of her discovery.

"Well, well, well," General Leo said with a chuckle as he got a closer look at Xane. He was looking off to the side, completely ashamed, and Locke couldn't have looked more confused. "Look what we have here."

"Hello, Leo," Xane replied quietly, still not looking at him.

"Oh, I believe that's _General _Leo to you now," the young woman pointed out to him as she tapped him on the back. She looked at General Leo again and brushed a strand of hair out of her face. "So, what do you think we should do to him?"

"Well, it's been a long time since we have seen him," the man began with a smile as he rubbed his chin with his fingers. Locke could tell that he was genuinely happy to see Xane for some reason, but wouldn't show it. "I think we should show him our hospitality."

"I'm not here for a vacation, but thanks anyway," Xane snapped as he tried to break free from the guards. His attempt was useless for the soldiers had a solid grip on him. "Besides, I wouldn't call the hold your boys have on me 'hospitality.'"

The young woman clasped her hands in front of her chest and smiled. "Go ahead, Leo. Ask him why he's here."

"You know why I'm here, so we can quit with the guessing games while we're ahead." Locke was surprised at how Xane was talking to them, yet they didn't beat him down for it.

"What the hell is going on?" Locke asked, breaking the moment of silence that swept through everyone.

General Leo crossed his arms and moved his attention from Xane over to Locke. He let out a frown toward Xane then walked over to the younger man. Locke could feel his pulse race as General Leo inched closer to him. "Who's this?"

"Let him go," Xane said forcefully. Again he tried to struggle free of the guards' grasp, but they held on tightly. "There's no reason that he should get involved in this. He doesn't know anything that's going on. This is between you, me, and the rest of the Empire."

"What did I miss?" Locke asked Xane impatiently, ignoring everyone else that was standing around him.

"Very well, we'll let him go," General Leo stated with a sigh as he waved his hand to the guards that held onto Locke. He turned back to Xane and flashed him a very large smile. "However, we have some unfinished business to attend with you."

"Just like that, huh?" Xane challenged as he struggled again. "That's it? You're just gonna let him go? No tricks?"

"I'm disappointed that you would think otherwise. You should know me well enough to know that I don't fool around with that," General Leo said as he gently patted Locke on the shoulder. "I'll have the guards escort him out of Jidoor territory and let him go. Now, if he tries anything, such as coming back and trying to free you, I won't be so nice next time. Like you said, there's no reason to get an innocent man involved."

Locke was quite surprised at the way General Leo was talking for he was very good natured. He was unlike any general that he had heard rumors about, but he wasn't about ready to let all the rumors slide by. Too many horrible things have been proved true. However, he wasn't thrilled with the fact that they were going to take Xane somewhere without letting him know where he was going.

"All right, men," General Leo stated to the soldiers that were holding Xane. "Follow Celes to the penitentiary and lock him up. I'll be there in a minute after I deal with our new friend that we made over here."

"Let's not exaggerate," Locke retorted with a scoff as he looked off to the side. He didn't even realize that his sentence slipped until Xane and General Leo turned and gave him the same disapproving look.

"Shut the hell up," Xane whispered in warning as he eyed the young woman and General Leo. "Fine, let's just get this over with. Just lock me up."

With a nod of her head, the young woman led the soldiers and Xane into town and General Leo smiled at Locke. Locke watched until Xane was out of sight and cursed at himself for not being able to help him. He shook his head at himself and questioned why Xane hardly tried to escape. _He was more interested in making sure that I was going to be safe then trying to get the hell out of there…_

"Well, so what do you know?" Locke whipped his head toward General Leo when he began to speak.

"I'm sorry? What do you mean?" Locke asked as he furrowed his forehead. The general laughed at him and Locke frowned. "I think I should be the one asking you what you want with Xane Riley."

"'Xane _Riley?_ Oh, is that what he's calling himself nowadays?" The General asked as he rubbed his chin with his thumb and forefinger. At first Locke thought that he was amused, but he proved him wrong by shaking his head and sighing. "Wow, it's amazing how people's motivations change. He had so much potential too."

"Can I ask you what's going on?" Locke tried to remain as patient as possible, though his patience was running thin. _All these secrets that no one is sharing with me…_He thought as he tried to study the young general.

A chuckle escaped General Leo's lips as he shook his head. "You can ask all you want, but I won't be able to give you an answer. I'm sorry, young man. As Xane said, this is a situation that is between Xane, Celes, the rest of the Empire, and I. I'm afraid I can't allow this sort of information out to the public."

"I understand," Locke lied. He sighed as the general smiled at him. _Why is he being so damn nice to me? _He thought to himself in confusion.

General Leo looked at the guards and nodded. "All right. You take care now." Locke looked in confusion as the young general quietly started to walk back to Jidoor. He wriggled free of the soldier's grasp and looked at them for a second.

He turned on his heel and go in the other direction to think of a plan, but he heard a chuckle from behind him, startling him. He looked over his shoulder to see what the humor was about, and the last thing he saw was one of the soldier's fists aimed toward his head.


	35. The Truth About Xane

**Welcome to the longest chapter in this story and BY FAR my favorite! I never really intended for it to be this long, but I just kept writing and writing and writing. Besides, mostly everything is explained in this chapter...well, obviously the truth about Xane. (Hence the title of the chapter) Oh, for those of you who love Locke's Scenario...notice anything here? (I also refer to it in the chapter about Locke's scenario...but that was chapter 13, so I doubt you remember!) Okay...read!**

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**35. The Truth About Xane**

Locke blinked his eyes open and squinted in the bright sunlight. He looked at his watch and saw that he was only unconscious for a short period of time, and that made him feel relieved. He also knew that by the way his head was pounding, he would have a bruise later in the day on the spot where the soldier struck him.

"Oooh…" He muttered as he slowly sat up and put his hand on his head. He looked around and realized that he was in the wooded area not far from Jidoor. "What a bunch of idiots. They knock me unconscious then drag me to a spot not far from where Xane is. Did they honestly think that I wouldn't go back?"

With a chuckle, he rose to his feet and brushed the dirt and dead leaves off of his clothing. Placing his hand back on his head, he blinked several times to find his equilibrium, then started on his way back to Jidoor to assist Xane in escaping.

When he arrived at the edge of the forest, he looked toward Jidoor and realized that the number of guards didn't diminish. _Now there actually looks like there are more guards on duty…_He thought as he moved a few branches out of the way to get a better look. As quietly as he could, he stood up and decided to use his original plan that he thought up for he and Xane; take the risk of just walking into town and pretending that he was in for supplies.

"Halt!" Locke froze in his steps when he heard a gruff voice behind him. A subtle but familiar 'click' proved that the man cocked his gun and had it pointed directly for Locke. "State your business."

Locke slowly turned around on his heel to face the man. He was in heavy Imperial armor, and like Locke suspected, had a huge machine gun aimed for his chest. Without taking his eyes off of the large gun, he nervously managed to say, "Uh, I would like to speak to the prisoner."

"What the hell for?" The soldier demanded as he motioned his lack of patience with his gun, Locke's eyes following its every move. "I'm not permitted to let you see him without a damn good excuse."

"He owes me money?" Locke raised the pitch of his voice at the end of the statement, transforming what was supposed to be a convincing lie to a question.

"Ha ha ha, nice try," the soldier said sarcastically as he put his gun down by his side. Now he was more amused at the situation than anything. "The prisoner has something very important to us."

"And what may that be, pray tell?" Locke asked, narrowing his eyes. He couldn't tell if the soldier was telling the truth or just trying to throw him off guard.

"Look, pal, I'm sworn to secrecy." He shrugged his shoulders as he spoke. "So what that basically means is that if I told you, I would have to kill you."

"Well, I'm insanely curious," Locke challenged in a chipper tone as he crossed his arms. "Therefore, I'm going to take my chances and give you permission to kill me after you tell me. That way I'll be able to quench my curiosity and then take my new knowledge to the grave."

"You're nuts!" The soldier laughed and Locke nodded honestly.

"I prefer to call it a moment of temporary insanity, but you can call it whatever the hell you want." He motioned with his fingers for the soldier to keep talking. "Come on, let's hear it. I don't have all day."

"Well, I don't know all the details," the soldier began as he moved in toward Locke a little bit. After a dramatic pause, he punched Locke in the stomach with all of his might. "And even if I did, I sure as hell wouldn't tell you!"

With a grunt, Locke gripped his stomach and blinked as he tried to regain his footing. The soldier got out his gun and aimed right for Locke's head again. With lack of ideas, Locke kicked the soldier's feet from under him, causing him to fall on his back and his gun to slide across the ground.

The soldier slowly got to his feet, giving Locke enough time to recover and grab his dagger out of the holster. The soldier flashed Locke a frightened look, for he was unarmed, and Locke simply chuckled. An idea sprung into his head, so he looked around and when he realized the coast was clear, he struck the man across the temple with the hilt of his dagger, knocking him unconscious.

Locke picked up the man and hid behind a clump of bushes to remain unseen. He quickly stripped the man out of his Imperial attire and tried it on for size over his own clothing.

"It's a little big, but I'll get over it," he said under his breath as he shifted his shoulders around inside the heavy armor. He glanced at the unconscious man and figured he couldn't just leave him there, so he picked him up, walked deeper into the forest, and threw the man in some heavy shrubbery. "A soldier knocks me out, then I knock out a soldier. I think that only seems fair."

As stealthily as he could, he made his way back out of the forest and started to walk toward the main headquarters in Jidoor. Realizing that he didn't look as convincing as he had hoped, he grabbed the gun that the soldier dropped and held it in the correct Imperial way.

"Hey, you!" Locke froze again, hoping that he wasn't caught. A soldier ran up to him and patted him on the back. "There you are! I've been looking all over for you! I was wondering what happened! You better be careful or else Leo's gonna be pissed that you walked away from your post."

"Uh, yeah, I just had to stretch out my legs." Locke had to lower the pitch of his voice slightly so his real voice wouldn't be revealed, and the other man fell for it. "I'm going to see what's going on with that prisoner."

"I wouldn't worry about it if I were you," the man said as he looked around, obviously to make sure he wasn't caught being off his post either. "General Leo's got it all under control. However, even in prisoner status, it's good to have Xane back. I missed him."

'_It's good to have Xane back?' What the hell is going on…_Locke knew he had to get more information out, so he said, "Xane? Hmm. The name doesn't ring a bell. How come I don't remember him?"

"How can you forget General Xane?" The excitement in the young soldier's voice made Locke bite his lip. "Damn, he was the most amazing soldier aside from General Leo. It's funny too, because he was just promoted to general before he just left us."

"What happened to him after he left?" Locke asked as the soldier sighed. "That good, huh?"

"No, it was just that he was called a traitor for quite a long time because he 'stole' something that the Empire gave him," the soldier explained.

"What did he steal anyway?" _It was the same thing that the other soldier said to me…there's no way two soldiers would lie…_

"Ya know, I'm not even sure to be honest with you."

"Does anyone know, or is it just one of those huge secrets that Gestahl is trying to keep from all of us again?" Locke couldn't help the heavy sarcasm that was in his voice, but the soldier found humor in it and chuckled.

"I think it's one of those things where Gestahl would be afraid for us to find out what it was," he admitted as he looked around. "I guess I should shut my yap though. I don't want one of the generals to come out and find me loafing around."

"All right," Locke stated as he motioned toward the mansion at the northern part of town. "You better get back to your post then. I'm gonna go see if I can get some information out of Xane. I'm pretty damn curious."

"Good luck, man," the soldier said as he patted Locke on the shoulder again. "Be careful though! You don't wanna be seen off your post!"

"Thanks for the warning, but I'm sure I'll be okay." The soldier nodded as he walked to his post and Locke walked up to the entrance to the mansion. He gave the guards the proper salute, and they opened the door.

When Locke walked in, he had a good look around. The place was crawling with Imperial soldiers, and that made him very nervous. He didn't want to get caught in a place like this for there was nowhere to run and hide.

He made his way around as nonchalantly as possible, nodding to soldiers every now again, and finally found the staircase that lead to their makeshift temporary prison. No one was around so he walked down the stairs, but stopped when he heard someone talking.

"Xane, I can't believe you." It was a female voice; gentle, but at the same time had a sharp edge to it. Locke looked around the corner of the wall and looked at her profile carefully. It was the woman that discovered them on the outside of town.

"Celes, come on," Xane said as he scoffed and slightly banged his hands against the metal bars. "You know I don't deserve to be in here. Let me out."

"As much as I would love to, I can't, Xane," she replied with a sigh. "You shouldn't have even left in the first place. You're very valuable to the Empire."

"You are too," he snapped back at her, causing her to let out a short laugh. _Okay, what's going on? Since we first saw her, they've been talking as if they've known each other for years…_Locke thought as he tried to get a better look at what was going on.

"I'm also a General now, so I'm even more valuable to the Empire." She took a few steps away from him, her heels coldly clicking against the stone floor. "They, heh, pretty much doubled my training when you left then gave me your job."

Xane shook his head in disbelief and looked at her closely. "Celes, look at yourself. You're barely 18 years old and you're already a general of the Imperial army."

"I know, isn't it great?" She giggled and spun around like a little girl, ignoring his disappointed tone. "I'm just moving my way up in the world. Much like you did before you decided to turn traitor."

He ignored her snide remark and crossed his arms against his chest. "I didn't mean that as a compliment." Her smile faded, so he continued. "You're growing up too quickly. Think about it, you didn't even have a childhood. You went from a baby to a woman in the matter of a heartbeat. Slow down and live a little."

"No time for that," she said as she turned back to him. "I have way too many things to do before I take a sabbatical. I mean, I was just stationed in Maranda and now I'm here. I'm a busy girl. At least I'm making something of my life instead of prancing about like you're doing."

"You don't know anything about my life anymore, Celes Chere, so you better knock it off." His voice was harsh and it was obvious that he hurt her.

"Look who's talking, Xane _Riley_," she snapped, emphasizing his last name. "Ugh, why did you even change your last name anyway?"

"It's not that I changed it, I just dropped the last part and used my middle name," he explained as she made a face at him. "Besides, if I remember correctly, I didn't ask for your approval. I just needed something that was confidential." With a shrug, he leaned against the back wall of his cell. "Just let me out, Celes. It's not like I'll leave. I just hate feeling like a prisoner."

"The only way I can let you out is if you come back to us." She quickly walked up to the cell and put her hands on the bars. "Xane, I miss you. You could be standing next to me, you know."

"Yeah, stabbing Gestahl through the heart at the same time?" Xane questioned as Celes let out a gasp in horror. "Don't even give me that reaction, Celes."

"You could be given the death sentence if you talk like that!" Locke moved back against the wall to remain hidden as she looked around. Turning back to Xane, she resumed speaking. "You're lucky that I'm very forgiving and I won't repeat what you said to anyone else in the Empire."

"Like you guys are gonna let me go anyway?" He asked as she tapped her toe on the ground.

"We won't kill you unless you keep talking about the Emperor like that," she started as she tossed her blonde hair out of her face. "The worst thing we're going to do is leave you in this cell and let you contemplate everything for a while. It would be better if you gave up and took back your role in the Empire."

Xane walked back up to the front of the tiny cell and put his hands back on the bars. In a fierce tone, he whispered, "My role with the Empire now is to stop their insanity. You know just as well as I do that Gestahl is going to try to take over the world with everything he's got. He's not going to stop until everyone worships the ground he walks on. Who knows what he's going to do to achieve his goal."

"How dare you say things like that! Emperor Gestahl is an excellent emperor, and you know it!" She protested as Locke shook his head. _Yeah, 'excellent' my ass…_He wanted to get Xane out of there, but the conversation between Xane and Celes was just starting to get interesting. "He would never abuse his power that he was rightfully given."

"Oh really? And what about Kohlingen and Maranda? All those people that were killed under Gestahl's orders? What would you call that?" He hit the bars with his hands again, causing her to take a few steps backward in surprise. "If you were wise, you would get out of the Empire's thrall before it's too late. Actually, now that I think about it, I did catch wind of what happened in Maranda, Celes. It might be too late for you to realize what you've gotten yourself into."

She quickly stomped back over to the prison cell, leaned over and held onto the bars as her eyes flared up. "You wanna challenge me, Xane?"

"Celes, that's not even a remote threat to me," he said in annoyance as she huffed. "It would be an equal battle with the two of us and you know it."

"It's because we were made to be by each other in the Empire!"

'_Made?' _Locke thought to himself as he listened carefully. _Did she mean 'meant?' If she didn't, what did she mean?_

"No shit, Celes," Xane replied with a slight laugh. _Uh oh…she did say that correctly…_Locke thought in confusion. "However, from what I've heard, that…witch, or whatever the hell she may be, is taking over my spot rather quickly."

"She's different," Celes said quietly. "There's nothing…artificial about her. She was born with her skills. It's strange to think of…"

"Yeah." Xane's tone was just as small as Celes'. He whipped his head up as the young general started to walk away again. "Please, Celes."

Without breaking her stride, she threw back, "I'm not letting you out."

"I know you aren't, but that's not what I meant." Locke heard her stop in her tracks as Xane continued. "Don't let yourself get caught up in this fucked up mess. The Empire is full of cowards, Celes. Don't deny that. I'm just looking out for you. It's my job."

"You don't know what you're talking about." Although she tried to sound confident with her statement, there was an obvious trace of doubt in her voice. Without another word, she turned the corner and almost ran into Locke. Luckily, the soldier's helmet that he was wearing covered his eyes, so she wasn't able to recognize him. "What the hell are you doing here?"

"Uh, General Leo told me to watch over the prisoner," Locke fibbed as he looked away from Celes' burning eyes. She was the same height as he was, so eye contact was inevitable if he looked at her. _The resemblance…_He thought as she scoffed.

"Fine," she said as she crossed her arms and stormed past him. "Be careful with this one. You have no idea what he's capable of."

"Yes, ma'am," he replied with a saluted. After she was out of sight, he ran up to the prison cell. "Come on, Xane, let's get you out of here."

"Locke!" He exclaimed when he recognized who it was. "What are you doing here? H-How the hell did you get past all the guards?"

"Can you not see the Imperial garb?" Locke stated as he pointed to himself. "It was simple after that."

"Did you…overhear the conversation I just had?" Xane asked sheepishly as Locke nodded. "Oh, I hoped you wouldn't have."

"What did she mean, you were 'made' to be together?" Locke demanded as he searched through his armor to find his lock picks that were attached to his regular clothing. He looked up and saw Xane turn his head and shake his head. "Okay, if you're not going to answer that question, answer this one. Why the hell didn't you tell me that you used to work for the Empire?"

"What was I supposed to say?" Xane asked as Locke shrugged.

"I don't know, how about something like, 'hey Locke, I used to work for the Empire.' You didn't need a monologue written out." Xane remained silent as Locke found the picks and protested when he started to work on the lock.

"Don't!"

"What are you talking about?" Locke asked in question as he looked around. "I gotta get you out of here somehow and since I don't have the keys to the place, picking the lock is the only option."

"No, leave me here," Xane said as Locke gave him a quizzical look. "Seriously, get out of here."

"Not without you!" He snapped as he continued working with the lock.

"Locke, you just don't understand." There was harshness in Xane's voice that surprised Locke and made him look up from what he was doing. "They won't kill me if that's what you're worried about."

"How do you know?"

"I'm important to them." His simple statement only caused Locke to be more confused. "Besides, you heard Celes say it herself."

"I don't get you," he said, putting his arms down. "I can't leave you here, Xane. I don't trust the Empire."

"Don't worry about me," Xane replied with a smile. "They just want me to give in to them."

"Will you?" Locke asked, slightly afraid of the answer.

"Of course not. I'm not a fool," he replied with a chuckle. "However, I need you to do me a favor."

"What's that?"

"Tell Vaughn what happened. He'll understand what's going on." Locke whipped his head up again. "Like he said before we left, if something happened to one of us, the other had to go back to him and let him know."

"Does Vaughn know about how you used to work for the Empire?" Xane looked down and nodded. "Oh. Well, that makes some sense. Actually, it makes a _lot_ of sense."

"Now get gone," he said motioned toward the door. Locke stayed in the same spot and Xane walked right up to the bars and motioned Locke to come closer. He obeyed as Xane whispered, "I need to do a little reconnaissance with the Empire right now. I need to see what they're up to, so maybe I can squeak some info out of Celes. She'll listen to me."

"Why's that?" Locke asked as Xane tapped his fingers against the bars. "You're being very quiet about her. Are you hiding something else about her? What, was she a past girlfriend while you were in the army together or something?"

"What? No!" He exclaimed as he made a disgusted face and groaned. "Dating Celes? Hell no!"

"Okay then, I'm glad we have a strong opinion about that," Locke said as he gave a half hearted laugh. "If it's not 'that bad,' I think you can tell me. What are you hiding?"

"Celes and I have known each other for a very long time, so I know that I can get information out of her," he replied simply. Locke wasn't satisfied, so he put his hands on his hips and motioned him to go on. "Hmm, not good enough?"

"Not a chance," Locke stated with a shrug of his shoulders. "Now's the time to come clean to me."

"Fine," he said with a sigh. "I just don't like to talk about this, but I know I can trust you. Celes, she's…my sister."

"That's not that bad of a thing to share. However, now that I think about it, you've never mentioned that you had a sister," Locke said as he narrowed his eyes at him.

"I know I haven't. I do that for her own protection. It's a long story." By the look in Xane's eyes, Locke could tell that it wasn't a happy story, so he kept a confused look on his face. "Fine, I'll summarize it for you as succinctly as I can. When I was about nine years old, my mother and father moved to Vector, which is obviously where the Imperial base is. When Gestahl met my mother, he fell in love with her, and even though she was married, he pursued her anyway. He sent her flowers, notes, and sometimes even threats daily if she didn't leave my father and marry him. My parents were happily married and in love, so she obviously stayed with my father. Goddesses, I remember the arguments my parents used to have saying that they should leave Vector. My father wouldn't though because he had a great job there. Hell, that's why we moved there in the first place.

"Anyway, after a few months, Gestahl stopped wooing her but forced my father to be in the Imperial army, completely against his will. Not only was he leaving his family, but my mother was now pregnant…with Celes. The very next day he joined, we received a telegram saying he was killed in battle. It was too coincidental if you'd ask me. I was devastated because my father and I were very close, not to mention that my mother was ruined from the news. She swore to wear black for the rest of her life and…she was just different. She never laughed, her eyes never sparkled like the used to, and she coddled me more than ever. I have been told that I have a very close resemblance to my father, so I know I was the closest thing that she had to him.

"The next week, Gestahl began to pursue my mother again. Knowing that we didn't have anything left, including money to survive off of, my mother accepted his hand in marriage so we would have the money to eat and whatnot. Shit, I'll never forget that wedding. It was…a nightmare. She walked through the day without any form of emotion on her face. She was barely a human anymore; she was an empty shell. When dad died, she lost her will to live…" Xane looked off to the side in pain of the memory. Locke felt pain in his heart because he understood what she went through because that was a good explanation of what had happened after Rachel died.

"I…think I know where you're coming from," he mumbled under his breath as Xane gave him a sympathetic look. With a sigh, he looked back up at Xane and could tell that his story wasn't finished. "Go on though. I'm still listening."

"When she married, Gestahl was terrible to her. Although he claimed that he loved her, he would beat her, rape her, scream at her, and rarely let her see me. Nine times out of ten I was confined to the basement and that's when Cid found out about me and took me under his wing. He was like my makeshift dad.

"About two months later, my mother was so persistent on seeing me that Gestahl let some of his soldiers abuse her to the point of knocking her unconscious. Although I was still very young, I stormed up to Gestahl and gave him a piece of my mind. Instead of getting pissed, he was actually very intrigued at my bold behavior and told me that I would be very important in the army. Then, he knocked me out.

"I woke up about a day later in the presence of my mother. She was crying as she told me that I was infused with magic and then she said that she would never be able to see me again. I was to be sent off to start training for the Imperial army as soon as possible to learn to hone my magic skills."

He paused again, and Locke didn't realize just how enthralled he was in the story. The secrets that Xane were holding were far deeper than he could've imagined, and he knew that Xane was having a difficult time explaining.

"I can tell you're getting overloaded, so basically what else happened is that Gestahl killed my mother after Celes was born and infused her with magic as well when she was a baby. Then we both grew up together as important members of the army. In other words, we were trained to become weapons." Locke gave him a confused look and expected him to go on, but Xane shrugged his shoulders. "The end. That's the gist of it."

"Wow," Locke said as he exhaled. "I…had no idea."

"I know you didn't," Xane stated with a shrug of his shoulders. "I'm sorry I didn't tell you, but I didn't really want to. No offence, but they're stories that I'd rather deal with myself."

"No, man, I completely understand," Locke said with a wave of his hands. "I'm glad you were able to tell me though. But, um, I take it Vaughn doesn't know that Celes is your sister, does he?"

"Call it the big brother instinct that I have, but he doesn't even know that she exists," he explained as he rested his hands on the bars of his cell. "Knowing that she can use magic, she's a major threat to the Returners and I don't want anything to happen to her. She's my baby sister and I love her to death, but we live in different worlds now. She's a smart girl though, so I know she'll break out of the Empire's thrall eventually."

"Oh." He felt uncomfortable all of a sudden, so he took off the soldier helmet and ran his fingers through his short blonde hair.

Xane sensed Locke's nervousness, so he reached through the bars and patted him on the shoulder. "I'll be fine, Locke." He could tell that Locke wasn't won over, so he added, "Even if you dragged me out of here, I would come right back."

"Why?" Locke demanded as Xane chuckled. "I have a bad feeling about leaving you here in the hands of the people who killed Rachel."

"Just go," Xane repeated as they heard the door open from the top of the stairs. Locke jumped in surprise and put his helmet back on as quickly as possible so he wouldn't be revealed. "Shit! Get outta here!"

Locke remained silent as Xane's gaze burned into Locke's eyes. The sound of footsteps clattered down the stairs and Locke turned to see General Celes and General Leo standing there.

"How's our prisoner doing?" General Leo asked Xane pleasantly as he and Celes walked closer to the cell.

Locke gave a pleading look to Xane, who smiled pleasantly at the two generals. "I'm fine. You know, if you consider 'fine' being locked up in a cell. So, Leo, we didn't get to chat when you ordered Celes to drag me down here. How have you been?"

_Xane's right, they're not going to kill him…I think it hurts them to have to do this to him…_He thought with a heavy heart as he looked between the two generals and his friend, seeing the maudlin look on Leo's face. _If I stay here, I'll only get caught…_"Well, I think it's time for me to take a break. I'm gonna go check out the dancers at the café."

"Nice work, soldier," General Leo stated with a smile. "If you have been able to keep a close eye on this man without getting hurt, that's a personal accomplishment. Your commander will be proud."

"Thanks," Locke muttered as he saluted. He took one final look at Xane, then walked past General Leo and General Celes, and walked up the stairs.


	36. Vaughn Reveals Another Secret

**Okay, first of all...I just wanted to say that before I wrote the last two chapters, I never really liked Celes...but when I wrote about her, I started to like her more. I now like her a lot...but I still don't see how Locke and Celes could pair up...but that's my own personal opinion. Anyway, this chapter explains MANY MANY questions that I'm sure you've had since the beginning chapters...FINALLY they're solved. Now, after reading these last few chapters, do you now understand why I had to have the majority of the fic written before I could post it? See how everything revolves around other events:insert squee here: I am so excited that I have these posted! I have kept my mouth shut about what happens...so NO ONE knew what I had in store. Okay, I'm going to bed now. Night!**

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**36. Vaughn Reveals Another Secret**

With his hands buried deeply into his pockets, Locke made his way through the plains back to the Quantz hideout. He was feeling a plethora of different emotions, and he wasn't sure which ones he should act on, if any at all. He felt as though he just received a lot of information about the Empire, but he didn't know how to make heads or tails of it. Basically everything he heard in that ten-minute span between Celes and Xane was a jumbled mess in his brain. All he could think of was that Xane was in the hands of the Empire, locked up in a cell.

_First Rachel, now Xane…Who will be the next person in my life to be their newest target…_He couldn't help the feeling that the Empire was ruining his life slowly but surely. The Empire was ripping away the threads that composed Locke's entire being. The echoing cry of Rachel when she was being raped rang in his head as he gritted his teeth and swallowed the lump that was in his throat. As hard as he tried shaking the sound from his memory, it was there, crystal clear. The look in Xane's eyes as he yelled at Locke also flashed through his mind; as if the two memories intertwined as one and changed like a flipbook.

Of all the emotions that he was feeling, hurt and betrayal were the two that were the most prominent. _Why didn't Xane just tell me…_He thought to himself, evaluating the friendship that he and Xane had shared. _I considered us pretty good friends…I was honest with him! Why couldn't he have been honest with me? _He felt betrayed not only by Xane, but by Vaughn as well. Ever since Locke joined Quantz, he knew Xane possessed the gift of magic and Vaughn would never explain it to him. Although Locke was curious from day one, he now wasn't sure if he wanted to know the truth.

_Sometimes the truth is harder to accept…_He thought as he entered the forest. Moving the branches aside, he continued to think. _Xane worked for the Empire…the very enemy of my life. Does that mean that Xane is my enemy? No…Xane is my friend…_

The more he thought about it, the more confused he began to grow. He stopped at the mountain side that contained the hideout and reached into his pocket to grab a warp stone. Upon holding it in the air, a mystical glow surrounded around him and warped him through the wall to the inside of the hideout.

He held his anger inside as he looked at the small stone in his hand. Every time it was used, it diminished in size, and now it was almost gone. _I'll need a get a new one soon…_He thought as he shoved it in his back pocket and began to walk to his room and sulk for the rest of the night. He didn't get very far before he heard a voice from behind him.

"Where the hell have you been?" Locke stopped in his tracks when he heard his boss' demanding question and sharply inhaled.

"Not here," Locke stated, an obvious edge to his voice.

"Thank you, Locke," Vaughn snapped back as he moved closer to the younger man. Locke didn't turn around as he heard the footsteps approaching him. Instead, he clenched his teeth and fists in anger, hoping he wouldn't do anything irrational. "I don't like to play games, you know that. Therefore, I'm going to ask this one more time; where have you been?"

With a grim look on his face, Locke slowly turned on his heel to see Vaughn. The older man's appearance looked different than it usually did. His shirt and pants were wrinkled, his hair was disheveled, dark circles were apparent under his eyes, and even his face was paler than usual. Locke knew that he and Xane were gone for over 12 hours and Vaughn didn't sleep a wink since the day before.

"Where's Xane?" Vaughn asked, accepting the fact that Locke wasn't going to answer his first question. "Locke, say something, dammit!"

Locke wanted to say a thousand words to express what he was feeling or what happened to Xane. However, the only words he managed to force out were, "I fucking hate the Empire." Vaughn blinked in surprise at Locke's bluntness, but after he saw the hatred burning deeply in Locke's eyes, his face fell into a frown.

"I'm going to ask this again." The older man walked closely to Locke and looked him in the eyes. The man's tired eyes were full of worry, and he even swallowed before he spoke again, as if he were afraid of the answer to the question he was about to ask. "What happened to Xane?"

"Why didn't you tell me that Xane used to work for the Empire?" Locke questioned back, his voice full of betrayal. "Neither of you told me, and you didn't have a reason to hide it from me"

"I knew this would happen eventually." Vaughn sighed, causing Locke to raise his eyebrows.

"What do you mean by that?" Locke questioned the older man with a scowl. Without a word, Vaughn motioned Locke to come into his office. When he closed the door behind Locke, he quietly walked to his desk and started searching through the drawers. Locke kept his feet firmly planted on the floor, waiting for Vaughn to say something. His chest hurt from holding in his emotions, but he wasn't going to vent to Vaughn. "You were the one who sent us after that damn diamond again and you knew the risks! You were basically walking Xane into a trap!"

"Ah," Vaughn murmured as he pulled out a small white envelope from one of the drawers. He sat in his seat and pointed to the chairs in front of his desk.

"I'm fine right here," Locke confirmed with a confident nod.

"As you wish," Vaughn said as he tapped the corner of the envelope on his desk. "Just so you're aware, I didn't have Xane walk into a trap. Is he okay?"

"Xane?" Locke asked as Vaughn nodded. "Are you nuts? Of course he's not okay! He's in a jail cell in the middle of Jidoor, waiting to see what they're going to do to him!"

"I see." Vaughn's response was hushed, and Locke let out a huff. Ignoring the reaction, he continued. "So I take it you now know the truth about his past."

"Yeah, and I had to find out the hard way, thanks a lot," Locke snapped. "You both held it from me for no apparent reason whatsoever, now he's locked in a cell, and you're calm about the entire situation!"

"There's no use getting worked up about it. It's out of our hands now," he replied, causing Locke's jaw to drop.

"That's it? That's all you can do?" Locke walked toward Vaughn's desk and sat in one of the chairs. "You don't have a plan of how to get him out? You're just going to leave him there?"

"Do you really want to fight against the entire Imperial army to take one of the most important weapons in the Empire back?" Vaughn challenged, angering Locke even more. "Magic is going to be the key here, and that's what Xane possesses. There are going to be more soldiers around him to make sure the he doesn't escape than you or anyone else would be able to fight off. You're not going to be able to get within twenty feet of him without getting into a fight with a guard."

"At this point, I'm willing to take my chances," Locke spat out. He leaned back in the chair he was sitting in and crossed his arms. He tapped his fingers on his right hand against his opposite arm to relieve some of his anger instead of attacking Vaughn. "Are you going to tell me the truth about the diamond now?"

"I guess I should. Well, to start out, the diamond isn't actually a diamond at all," Vaughn began to explain with a sigh. Locke gave him a queer look and he continued. "The diamond is actually an Esper. Or actually, what remains of an Esper when it dies."

"Esper," Locke murmured, the word sounding foreign and supernatural as it passed by his lips. The words struck him hard and he was thankful that he was already sitting down, for he was positive he would've passed out otherwise. "They're nothing but myths. How the hell did the Empire get a hold of a myth?"

"They're not myths, boy," Vaughn stated matter of factly, enunciating every word slowly, as if he were talking to a five year old child. "They're real. It's _all_ real. Magic, Espers, The Sealed Cave. Everything that has haunted your dreams and dreaded couldn't be true by the light of day; it's all real."

"Impossible," Locke said with a scoff. "My grandma told me about that kind of stuff when I was a kid, but there's no way it could be real. She was just trying to entertain me. Besides, when she told me about Espers and stuff, she always said that they got along with humans. There's no reason why they would rebel now."

"If they were in the hands of the wrong people, they would go berserk," Vaughn clarified as he walked over to his liquor table, poured a glass of water, then handed it to the younger man. "I'm just afraid that the Empire will go after Doma next."

"No thanks, I'm not thirsty." Absentmindedly, he took a sip from the glass, causing Vaughn to chuckle slightly. Locke licked the water off his lips, then looked back up at Vaughn. "Wait a minute. Doma? Why Doma?"

"Remember the Alexander diamond?" Locke shook his head and Vaughn nodded his head. "Okay. Do you remember when I sent you and Xane to the Opera House for the Queen of Doma's necklace?"

"Are you telling me that the Alexander Diamond is an Esper too?" Locke questioned in annoyance as he looked up at Vaughn.

"You better believe it," Vaughn stated and leaned against his desk. "Why else do you think we wanted that in our hands and not in the Empire's? There's a common denominator in all these missions that I've sent you on, Locke. I don't think that the Empire knows about the Alexander Diamond yet, so we're safe as of now."

"You are surprisingly calm about this situation, whereas I'm quite worried," Locke said, biting the inside of his cheek as he spoke. "Why is that?"

Vaughn let out a sigh and sat back down at his desk. "I told you. I've known about this entire situation for many years. Rumors have been flying around for a while, but when I met Xane, he explained how he was a traitor and everything. He gave me a lot of inside information of the Empire."

Taking another drink of the cool liquid, he shook his head in disbelief. "All this information is just great and all, but this doesn't help Xane get out of jail or make him here. I don't understand how you can just sit there!"

"It's because I know Xane and his situation a hell of a lot better than you do. Trust me on this one." Locke rolled his eyes and Vaughn continued to explain. "Listen to me, Locke. Xane wouldn't want you to go after him anyway. He knows his worth to the Empire but knows what they would use his power for. Gestahl made Xane as a weapon, nothing more than that."

"I take it that goes for Celes as well?" Locke questioned as Vaughn narrowed his eyes.

"Celes? Who's that?"

"Oh, man. When Xane and I were in Jidoor, we ran into this girl, Celes. When I talked to Xane later, when he was locked up, he explained to me that she was his sister,'" Locke began to explain as he watched the shocked expression on Vaughn's face. "He also told me that when they were younger, they both were infused by magic. She's still part of the Imperial army though. To be more specific, she's now a general, standing right next to General Leo. I overheard a lot of their conversation before I walked in, in disguise though."

"Shit. Why didn't Xane ever tell me about her?" Vaughn whispered to himself, placing the envelope on his desk and resting his hand on it. "What else did you overhear?"

"Something about another…witch? That's what Xane called her at least," he answered with a shrug. "Celes then said that the 'witch's' power was 'natural.' Who knows what the hell that means."

"We already knew about the girl," Vaughn said with a slight nod and a sigh. "However, I'm not sure what she means by her having 'natural' power. We just know she's hella powerful."

Locke rested an elbow on the arm of the chair and placed his forehead in his hand. He let out a slight agitated groan as he shook his head. "I'm so confused. What do you mean 'we?'"

"The Returners," he stated as he picked the envelope back up and turned it around in his hand.

"Returners?" Locke asked as he looked up and sat further in his seat.

"An anti-Empire organization," he replied simply, continuing to flip the envelope around. "Xane is part of this group as well."

"Well, I must say, this explains a lot," Locke mumbled under his breath in disbelief. "All those secret meetings you've been having with Xane, all the letters, everything. They've all been about the Empire and the Returners.

Vaughn nodded his head and pointed to the letter. "Banon and many other important members of the Returners have been keeping Xane and I up to date with what the Empire has been up to. Most of the hunts that I've sent you on had to deal with reconnaissance missions to make sure that everything was going to remain okay. That's basically what the heart of Quantz is, but usually no one in it is smart enough to figure that out."

"Well, I knew something was up and I brought my concerns to your attention. You never gave me any answers and left me in the dark," Locke reminded him as he ran his finger along the edge of the glass, resulting in a quiet humming. "Vaughn, you knew I've hated the Empire ever since that attack at Kohlingen. Why didn't you or Xane tell me anything about this group then?"

"First of all, I have been writing to our mentor Banon since the occurrence and I finally received a letter back." Vaughn pointed with the envelope as he spoke. "Secondly, if I would've flat out told you, you would've ran off without the approval, am I correct?"

"Where can I meet this Banon?" Locke asked, proving Vaughn's statement correct. Before Vaughn could answer, he put his glass on his desk and ripped the letter out of his hand in one swift movement. As quickly as he could, he opened the top of the envelope.

"At the Returners hideout by the Lete River." Locke flipped through the multi-page letter, looking for instructions. He scanned through it briefly, but he wasn't finding anything of interest. _Or maybe it's because Banon writes so damn small…_Locke thought as he found himself squinting to read the fine manuscript. "Basically all the letter says is that Banon wants to meet you and you've been accepted into the group."

"But he's never actually met me before," Locke stated, still rapidly skimming through the letter. "Maybe this is just because I have a major trust issue, but why does he trust me without actually meeting me or knowing anything about me?"

"He trusts me, therefore trusts you because I referred you to him," Vaughn replied, his seat leaning backward as he stretched his legs out. "You actually already have an appointment with the King of Figaro tomorrow morning."

He looked up from the letter and slightly winced. He had a problem with authority figures to begin with, so having a meeting with a king slightly terrified him and made him nervous at the same time. "The King of Figaro? Why do I have to meet with a king?"

"He's also part of the Returners. One of the most important affiliates to be honest with you," Vaughn replied as he walked back over to his liquor table. With a chuckle, he looked back at Locke and added, "There are more of us out there than you would think."

"An entire group composed of people who oppose the Empire," Locke said quietly as he put the letter back on Vaughn's desk. He rubbed his chin with his thumb and forefinger as he thought about the situation. "However, here's a question for you. The only way to get to Figaro is either to climb the mountains, which there is not a chance in hell of me doing that, or sail around the entire continent to get to the other side. I'm not too fond of boat rides, so how am I gonna get there? Swim?"

"No need," Vaughn informed him, ignoring Locke's slight sarcasm. He picked up one of the crystal pitchers on the liquor table and inspected it before pouring himself a glass and continuing. "Edgar, who is the king, is a fantastic mechanic. He has figured out a way to make Figaro submerge, go under the mountains, then pop right back up in the patch of desert to the east of here."

"No kidding," Locke said in awe. "So you're basically saying that I can just leave in the morning and meet with King Edgar when they submerge and surface again?"

"That's exactly what I'm saying." Vaughn placed his glass back on the table after emptying it then walked back to his desk. "Edgar said they'll arrive around nine tomorrow morning, so that means you have to get there precisely at that time. Give him the latest news of what you have heard from Xane and everything else that was going on in Kohlingen. Mention this Celes girl to him as well. He probably should hear about it."

"Then what?" Locked asked as he stood up and stretched.

"Then, see if Edgar has any orders for you," Vaughn stated with a shrug.

"And if he doesn't?

"Then go to the Returners Hideout and meet with Banon. He'll probably show you your new room and get you settled in." Locke put his arms back to his sides as his jaw slightly dropped again. "What is it?"

"Show me my new room? Are you telling me that I'm basically moving?"

"Well, it's more like a relocation, but basically, yes," Vaughn told him with a shrug. "Why stay here when you can have all the insight of the Empire right at the Returners Hideout?"

"But…I'm a treasure hunter," Locke protested as he gestured around him with his arms. "It's what I do. It's all I'm able to do."

"Not all treasure is tangible," Vaughn explained with a sly smile. "Now that you're part of the Returners, your treasure deals with getting information about the Empire to see if we can somehow thwart their ideas and stop them. The thing you don't understand is that Gestahl is secretly trying to take over the world."

"Is there any 'tangible' proof to that?" Locke slightly challenged. He wasn't trying to be difficult; he was just trying to pry for more information so he knew what he was getting himself into. "I'm just saying, Xane said the same thing to Celes and she told him that there was nothing wrong with Gestahl. I don't believe her because there have been a lot of conspicuous occurrences that have happened lately around the World of Balance that could be linked back to the Empire, especially the new thing with Espers, but…"

"What you just said is proof enough," Vaughn interrupted again. "Think of that attack on Kohlingen, Locke."

"I'd rather not," he replied quickly. Goosebumps rose all over his body at the thought, and he inhaled a shaky breath before resuming what he was saying. "It's a memory that will always be in my mind, but is something that I would rather not bring up."

"Okay, well, think about this then," Vaughn began as he sat back down in his seat. He folded his hands on his desk as he continued. "Maybe the Empire has a secret way that they could bring her back; something that counters the poison. Do a few exploration missions and who knows what you'll be able to find out. "

Locke lifted his head up to look the older man in the eye and slightly huffed. "You're trying to con me into this, aren't you?"

"In a way I guess I am, but you know I have a point," he countered as Locke looked down at the ground. "Think about what I said earlier; you have to fight magic with magic."

"That's what the patriarch said to me as well," Locke muttered as he remembered the old man saying that to him when he brought Rachel to him.

"I know, that's why I said it back to you," Vaughn replied softly, gently putting his hand on Locke's shoulder. "Go see Edgar, Locke. See if there's anything that you can do."

"All right," Locke agreed with a nod of his head. "I'll pack up everything I have and leave for Figaro first thing in the morning."

"Perfect," Vaughn said as he watched Locke walk toward the door. "Oh, and Locke?"

He turned on his heel to face Vaughn again. "Yeah?"

"No one else in Quantz knows about the Returners and I plan to keep it that way," he vehemently explained to Locke as he searched his desk drawers once again. "There aren't many here who care enough about anything but treasure hunting, so it would be pointless to inform them about it."

"Why'd you tell me then?" Locke asked, although he was quite certain that he already knew the answer. "Is it because I know what's up with Xane?"

"Well, not only that, but there are other…circumstances that made your hatred toward them grow," Vaughn replied with a wave of his hand as he pulled a few sheets of paper and a pen out from his desk. Locke looked down at his feet, giving Vaughn confirmation that Locke knew exactly what he was talking about. "Get some rest tonight."

"I'll definitely try," he answered quietly as he opened the door. Before he stepped out, he poked his head back in the room and said, "Vaughn, be sure to get some rest yourself. You look terrible."

Without looking up from the letter he started to write, he responded with, "good night, Locke."

Locked sighed as he watched Vaughn dip his pen back into the ink before shutting the door. He knew that he had a lot to do before morning, so he walked back to his room to begin to prepare.


	37. Figaro Castle

**I have no idea how the hell this chapter got to be over 4000 words. When I picked it up the other day, it was only 1,500 words...and it was basically only the part that was inspired by something someone said in the game. I hope you catch on to it! I absolutely love adding in tiny things like this...hee hee. Anyway, I like the way it turned out. I'm going to hold of on posting the next chapter, because it might be another 'in the past' chapter that I have yet to write. I am going out of town tomorrow (only over night for a quintet gig. UGH), so hopefully I will work on it soon. However, I beat Shadow Hearts tonight...so I have to start working on Covenant now! XD I can't believe how far I am in this fic...It makes me so extremely happy, you have no idea. This fic is my baby...I've worked so hard on it...and I'm going to be quite sad when it's all done and posted. Anyway, I need to get to bed because I have to wake up early tomorrow...again I say 'ugh.' Take care, everyone!**

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**37. Figaro Castle**

The next morning, Locke woke up and quickly gathered up his few belongings that he packed up the previous night. As he grabbed his dagger off the shelf, he looked around at his now bare room. He felt sad that he was going to put it behind him for it was his home for a little over two years, but something inside of him felt refreshed. _My chance to start over…_He told himself with a deep breath.

When he reached the door, he twisted the knob and walked out into the hallway. It was relatively early, so many of the treasure hunters were still asleep, but Locke still walked quietly to the entrance of the hideout. Vaughn's door was shut, but Locke knew that he was probably awake, so he lightly knocked on the door.

After a few seconds, the door opened and Vaughn poked his head out. He smiled when he saw Locke standing there, then ushered him into his office. "I was hoping you were going to say goodbye," he said with a chuckle.

"Of course," Locke replied with a shrug. "I'm not one for long good byes, but I would've felt guilty if I just packed up and left. Don't worry; you can't get rid of me this easily! I'll come back and visit. Maybe with some recon information or stuff from Banon."

"That reminds me," Vaughn began as he walked over to his desk and started to open some drawers. When he reached one on the left hand side, he pulled out an envelope then handed it to Locke. "Do me a favor and give this to Banon for me. It'll save me money on postage."

"Yeah, no problem." Locke put the envelope in his back pocket then looked back up at Vaughn, who had a smile on his face. "What's the look for? You're not going to give me the sappy 'I'm going to miss you so much' speech are you? It'll scare me if you do that."

Vaughn chuckled and walked back to his desk. Leaning on it, he crossed his legs at the ankles. "It'll be oddly quiet without you or Xane here, I will admit that much. Without the two of you arguing every three seconds, the hallways will seem quite empty."

"Xane and I haven't argued in a long time," Locke clarified with a chuckle of his own. "Okay, we've had our occasional bickering session every once and a while, but we more or less reached an understand that bitching wasn't going to get us anywhere."

"No, I believe it was more or less that you both realized that you were equally as stubborn," Vaughn said, pointing with his index finger. Locke smiled for a second, then his smile started to fade away. "I know what you're thinking. Don't worry about him, Locke. He's going to be fine."

"I know," Locke admitted, his smile staying off his face. He didn't want to dwell on the memory so he exhaled and looked at the clock that was on Vaughn's wall. "Well, I should probably go. I don't want to make King Edgar wait for my arrival."

"Take care of yourself, ya hear?" Vaughn raised an eyebrow as he spoke and Locke nodded his head. "I hope to hear from you soon."

"I'm sure you will," Locke reassured and walked up to Vaughn. With a smile, he put out his hand and Vaughn shook it. "You take care of yourself as well, old man."

"Ha, old man?" Vaughn exclaimed, throwing his hand up to his forehead. "I'm only five years older than you, so you better watch your mouth!"

Locke chuckled and crossed his arms over his chest. "I always wondered how old you were."

"Why didn't you just ask?" Vaughn questioned, watching Locke shrug as a reply. "You're right. I probably wouldn't have answered you. However, now you know so you better keep it to yourself."

"I will," Locke said with a quick nod and walked toward the door. Putting his hand on the knob, he turned toward Vaughn again and smiled. "Bye, Vaughn."

Instead of replying, Vaughn nodded his head and walked to his chair behind his desk. Locke sighed when he closed the door then made his way to the entrance of the hideout, where he used a warp stone to go to the outside.

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Locke felt his jaw drop when he saw Figaro castle in the middle of the desert several hours later. Knowing that he had never seen the castle before, it was odd to think that the entire thing was able to submerge itself underground and appear as if out of nowhere.

With an exhale, Locke made his way up to the front gate, where there were two guards standing on patrol.

"Good day," Locke said to them with a friendly nod as he started to walk between them. Surprisingly enough, they let him through without any trouble or questions. _I'm just gonna assume that they know who I am…_He thought to himself as he made it into the grand foyer.

A man with a long cape walked up to him when he saw the shocked look on Locke's face. "You must not be from around here," he said as Locke whipped his head toward him.

"What gave you that idea?" Locke asked with a chuckle as he continued to nonchalantly look around. "Is it that obvious?"

"Well, it's not every day that we have visitors, first of all," the man pointed out. "Especially when we're here on the Kohlingen side. Most of the time the visitors are either from the Empire or from South Figaro. And I can also tell that you're looking for King Edgar."

"Yeah, I was sent here by Vaughn," Locke stated and the man smiled and nodded. "I just want to say that this castle is amazing. Not just the fact that it can submerge, but it is beautiful."

"Why, thank you," he stated as he shook Locke's hand. "I'm the Chancellor of this castle. You said that Vaughn sent you here, eh? Well then, you must be Locke Cole."

"Ah, I see you've been waiting for me," he replied as he looked at his watch. "I'm sorry I'm a little early, but I didn't want to be late."

"Not a problem," the Chancellor said as he patted Locke on the shoulder. "Now, King Edgar is in the throne room, but I'm sure he wouldn't mind if you interrupted him now."

"Are you sure?" Locke asked with a slight hesitation. He didn't want to meet the king any earlier than he had to. "I mean, I can wait around for a few minutes."

"Nonsense!" The Chancellor chuckled as he turned and began to lead Locke to the throne room. "Right this way, please."

On the way, Locke kept an eye on everything that was going around him and he started to calm his nerves down slightly. All the people that he passed were polite and nodded their heads in a greeting. Although he wasn't sure why, he wasn't expecting such a kind arrival.

The Chancellor opened up the door and moved out the way so Locke could enter first. Once inside, Locke looked toward the center of the room where there was a young man down on one knee talking to a little girl.

"Now, how old are you, Ciera?" He asked her as she held the hem of her dress with her tiny fingers and swung back and forth. Her blonde hair was up in pigtails and they bounced slightly as she moved.

"I just turned five, your majesty," she replied with a slight curtsy, causing the young man to chuckle. Locke's eyes went wide when he realized that the young man was the king of Figaro. _He can't be much older than I am…_He thought as watched the conversation.

"Well, how about this? I'm going to need a bride eventually, and you are turning out to be a very beautiful young woman," he began, his smile widening as he gently put his finger under her chin. She blushed and let out a giggle at the touch. Locke tried not to laugh as he looked over at the Chancellor to see an annoyed look on his face as he watched what was going on. "So, how about when you get older, you and I get married."

"Really?" She squeaked with excitement and wrapped her arms around the young man's neck. "You mean it? I'm going to be queen one day?"

"Yep! You'll be able to wear pretty dresses and a pretty crown and—" he stopped talking when he saw an older woman walk in the room from a different door. He sheepishly stood up and gently patted the little girl on her head. "Hello, Matron."

"Hello, your highness," she replied with an amused smile as King Edgar cleared his throat in embarrassment. She motioned the little girl to come to her side. "Come on, Ciera. Your mother has been looking for you."

"Matron, Matron, guess what!" She exclaimed as she happily skipped over to the older woman and held onto her hand. "King Edgar said he'd marry me when I'm older! Isn't that just the bestest news ever!"

Ignoring the young girl's improper usage of grammar, she turned back toward King Edgar and playfully frowned at him as she shook her head. "Your majesty…"

"What? She'll make a fine queen someday. Besides, this is a big kingdom for me to run without a beautiful queen by my side," he protested with a shrug as Matron sighed. The king looked over at Locke and the Chancellor and gave them a look of relief. "I would love to explain myself some more, but it seems to me that I have company with impeccable timing. Have a good day, Matron."

"You as well, your highness," she said as she led the little girl outside of the throne room.

King Edgar chuckled as he watched them leave, then turned back toward Locke and the Chancellor at the front of the throne room. "Ah, hello! Thanks for coming at the right time so I didn't have to explain myself to Matron."

"So, just out of curiosity, how many fiancées does that give you now, King Edgar?" The Chancellor asked as the young king laughed. "Have you reached ten yet?"

"Oh no, my dear Chancellor! Don't tell me that you're going to patronize me as well! But, to answer your question, I think I'm only at six or seven. No worries though! I'll get to ten eventually!" He continued laugh as Locke raised his eyebrows. The king calmed down his laughter as he looked at Locke. "Oh, you must be Locke."

"Everyone knows me, don't they?" He asked the king as he nervously shifted his weight between his feet. "It's a pleasure to meet you, King Edgar."

"Oh, drop the formality, please. Just call me Edgar," he said as he shook Locke's hand. "I've heard a lot about you over the last few months, and I must say I am thrilled that you are now going to be my connection to the Returners."

"I…I am?" Locke blinked blankly for a second at the news. "I wasn't aware of that. I was just told by Vaughn to see you."

"Well, surprise," the king said with a smile. He turned to the Chancellor and patted him on the shoulder. "Would you please give me a few moments alone with Locke? I just want to go over some things with him that you and I went over yesterday, so there's no need to bore you to tears by having to hear it all again."

"Of course, your majesty," he stated as he bowed and left the room, leaving Locke and Edgar with some privacy.

"Very well then," Edgar started after the door shut. "We have been anxiously waiting for someone like you in the Returners, just so you know."

"Me? Why?" Locke asked, becoming a little self conscious. "Is it because of my hatred toward the Empire?"

Edgar nodded as Locke bowed his head and took several steps away from him. "We all have our hatred toward the Empire, but I do know your specific reasoning. Vaughn told us all what happened."

"Oh," he replied quietly, not taking his eyes off the floor. "I just want revenge for what happened to Rachel and Xane." Edgar furrowed his forehead and Locke turned around again when he noticed the silence. "What is it?"

"Xane?" Edgar asked, his eyes widening. "What happened to Xane?"

"Oh yeah," Locke mumbled and looked back down on the floor. _I guess I'm going to have to do a lot of explaining once I get to the Returners Hideout, so I better get used to it now…_He thought with an exhale. "Vaughn sent Xane and I to Jidoor yesterday and we were caught by a few Imperial soldiers."

"My my," he responded, putting his hand to his chin and grabbing his lower lip with his fingers. "This is quite an unexpected turn of events. I'm certain that Banon doesn't know about this either. Well, damn it."

Locke blinked at the king's language, but it did help him calm down. "Can I make things a little worse by adding something new in there?"

"Worse? Uh oh," Edgar mumbled. With a wave of his hand, he motioned Locke to continue.

"Well, when I went to rescue Xane, he refused to let me help him," Locke began with a sigh. He opened his mouth, the shut it again. As much as he wanted to tell Edgar about Xane's sister, he decided against it. _They don't need to know anyway…_He thought as he looked off to the side. "Well, you know Xane, so that was pretty much a given. I guess I really don't have anything to follow that."

"Whew, I thought you were going to say something worse," Edgar said with a relieved chuckle. "That's more or less expected from Xane. He'll probably want to see if he can get more information out of the Empire, that's all."

Locke shifted his weight again and nodded. "Yeah, that's exactly what he said to me. They didn't really have a tight grip on him or anything. It was almost as if…it hurt them to see him in a jail cell."

"He's an excellent soldier and they know it," Edgar replied confidently. "Karma will kick them in the ass sooner or later, so no worries." He took a step closer to Locke and put a hand on his shoulder. "I know that you just got here and all, but there is an assignment that I would like you to work on right away."

Locke looked up at Edgar once again. He felt slightly relieved that the king changed the subject and was thankful that he would be out doing something to take his mind off of what happened in Jidoor. "Sure. Anything."

"Word has reached our ears that something is going on with the more valuable scholars in this world," Edgar began, making sure that he had Locke's full attention. "Not that long ago, they started to disappear from their home towns. I'm not sure where they're going, but I smell a whiff of the Empire."

"Yeah, I do as well," Locke mumbled as he chewed the inside of his cheek. "Where do you hear all these rumors? Vaughn has informed me of several rumors, but not a lot of them are based on fact. It seems to me that sometimes they are so wild that no one would believe them."

Edgar nodded with a smirk. "Yes, that is true, but there have also been many rumors that have been proven true. The thing about the Returners; we don't believe in anything until we see it with our own eyes. Whenever there is a group with power, such as the Empire, people decide to spread rumors about them. That's where the Returners step in. We weed out the false information from the truth. You're a thief though, right?"

"Uh, heh, treasure hunter," Locke pointed out, trying not to jump down the king's throat about the misunderstanding.

"Same thing," Edgar replied, flicking his wrist. Locke weakly smiled and refrained from correcting him again. "Anyway, this will be the perfect job for you. You just need to find some information out, then report back here. How's that sound?" Before Locke was able to say a response, there was a knock at the door. Edgar narrowed his eyes as he said, "Come in."

"I beg your pardon, your highness," the Chancellor stated as walked into the throne room and handed an envelope to Edgar. "I have been informed that this just arrived. It has the Empire's stamp on it, so we all know what this means."

"Wonderful," Edgar sighed as he opened up the letter and began to read it silently. After several minutes, Locke started to look around so it wouldn't seem as though he wanted to know what the letter stated. "Just as I suspected."

"What's that?" Locke didn't mean to speak, but he was unable to stop himself. After the noise emitted from his mouth, he slightly cowered. "Sorry, I didn't mean to ask."

Edgar folded up the paper again and put it back in its envelope, his face remaining grim as he looked between the Chancellor and Locke. "No, it's not a problem. You're part of the Returners now so you have the right to know what's going on. It's a letter from Gestahl. He has some questions that he would like to ask the people of Figaro, namely myself. It also states that if we don't respond as soon as possible, he's going to send his boy Kefka to check things out. I'm telling you, he's up to something."

"You don't suppose he suspects you being part of the Returners?" Locke asked as Edgar held the envelope in one hand and tapped his other hand with it as he thought.

"No, I don't think he does, but I'm not really willing to take any chances," he stated as he bit at his lip. "Very well. I have a very strong feeling that Gestahl will act on this if I don't reply by the end of the day, so that means you're going to have to be very quick with getting information. I'm not going to reply to him. Not yet anyway. Chancellor, I would like you to give the orders to submerge to the other side of the mountains. Locke, when we arrive, I want you to go to South Figaro and see if you can get any information about where those scholars have been disappearing to. We'll let the Empire come to us if they desire to do so."

Edgar turned and started to walk toward his throne as Locke looked around uncomfortably. "Okay, I'll do that."

"When do you want me to give the engineer the order to submerge?" The Chancellor asked, causing Edgar to turn back around.

"Actually, I would like to submerge right away." Instead of turning again, he walked closer to Locke. "Why don't you go with the Chancellor to give the order, then you can walk around the castle for a while. I hate to send you off so soon without a meal, so please join us for lunch."

"Sure thing," Locke stated as he and the Chancellor left the throne room. He followed the Chancellor and almost ran into him once he stopped. "What is it?"

"I just remembered that I forgot to tell King Edgar something," he replied quietly. "Do me a favor. The engine room is right down there, so can you tell the mechanic that we need to submerge as soon as possible?"

"No problem," Locke said and watched the Chancellor disappear through a set of doors. With a shrug, Locke walked down the stairs and followed the increasing sound of the machinery. He grimaced at how noisy it was down there, so he quickly looked for the mechanic. He didn't see anyone around, so he started to look at the control panels that lined the walls. He saw a switch between two pillars and began to walk closer to it.

"Don't touch that! It's dangerous!" Locke spun around to see an older man wearing red standing behind him.

Locke placed his hand over his heart and chuckled when he realized it was only the mechanic. "You scared me!"

"What?" The man asked, practically shouting to talk over the roar of machinery. "I can't hear you!"

"I said that you scared me!" Locke repeated louder.

"Oh! I'm sorry!" The mechanic reached out his hand for a handshake and Locke followed through. "I haven't met you before. You new here?"

Locke looked down at his hand to see that it was now covered in grease, but he tried not to make a face at it. "Name's Locke Cole."

"Nice to meet you!" The mechanic yelled back. "What can I do for you?"

"King Edgar said that we need to submerge," Locke replied and put his hands in his pockets. The mechanic cupped his hand around his ear and motioned that he couldn't hear him. "I _said_, King Edgar said that—"

"Hold on a second!" The mechanic said as he walked to the control panel and flipped a few switches. The humming dulled quite a bit and Locke felt that he could again hear. "There, that's better."

Locke nodded and sighed. "Yes, much better. Thank you."

"Now, what did you say?" The mechanic asked and handed Locke a towel so he could wipe his hands.

"I said that King Edgar wants to submerge," Locke repeated for the third time in a normal tone of voice. He was thankful that he didn't have to shout anymore. "I'm assuming that switch over there is the one that does the trick?"

"Yes, it is," the mechanic said with a smile. "Pretty damn clever, isn't it? King Edgar designed the entire concept and even built most of it. It took him quite a while, but I think we'd all agree that it's the best defense mechanism, don't ya think? All I have to do is just pull the lever and make sure that everything runs smoothly."

"Very impressive," Locke stated as he looked at the room. "King Edgar thought up this all, eh?"

The mechanic nodded and made his way toward the lever. Before he put his hand on it, he looked back at Locke and smirked. "Oh, you might want to hold onto something if this is your first time experiencing this."

Raising an eyebrow, Locke responded with, "Nah, I'm sure I'll be just fine."

"Suit yourself, but it's a hell of a ride." The mechanic chuckled and grabbed the lever. With a grunt, he pulled it down then leaned against one of the pillars.

At first nothing really happened, so Locke began to fix his bandana. Just as he was finishing up the knot, the machinery in the room started to grow louder. With a grimace, Locke covered his ears with his hands to protect his hearing. As the floor started to shake, he cursed at himself for not listening to the mechanic's fair warning then grabbed onto railing by the control panel so he wouldn't lose his balance. It didn't take him long to figure out that it was impossible to hold onto the railing and cover his ears at the same time, so he chose to hold on and risk the chance of getting a headache.

After several terrible minutes, the machines finally calmed down and the ground stopped shaking. Locke put his hand over his heart to make sure that it was still beating, and sighed in relief when he felt a pulse. He swallowed and looked up at the mechanic, who was laughing hysterically.

"I told ya!" He said through his laughter. Locke was still too much in shock to laugh back, so he tried to take a few steps inside. "I wouldn't lie to you!"

"Y-Yeah," Locke admitted as he slowly made his way to the stairs again. Holding on tightly to the railing, he made his way up the stairs and saw that everyone was walking around as if nothing had happened. He heard more laughter and looked to the side.

"What's the matter, Locke?" Edgar asked as the Chancellor tried to conceal his laughter. "It looks like you've just seen a ghost."

"I never want to do that again," he said vehemently, putting his hand against the wall for more support. "I think I just lost six years of my life because of that."

"Ha, well, you should've felt the submerging when I first invented it." Locke whipped his head up and the Chancellor nodded at Edgar's sentence. "Even I felt a little queasy the first time it happened. After a few months I was able to tweak the kinks out, so it's smooth as can be now."

"Uhh…" Locke managed to squeak out, not agreeing that it was a 'smooth' process.

"Anyway, it's time for lunch so let's go to the dining hall," Edgar announced and pointed in that direction. Finally finding his footing, Locke moved away from the wall and followed the young king and the Chancellor.


	38. Bad News In South Figaro

**Hey, look! I'm still alive! I know that it took me forever to update again (over four months), but I wanted to finish everything,…and then I edited everything. So there are a few new parts in some chapters, and the grammar/spelling should be mostly correct now. (I'll probably notice something in a little bit and it'll irk me to no end. There are just some things that I miss. My "Cheap is talk" line was classic. Yeah. Go me. FACEPALM) So now Remembering Rachel is finished. Shit…I've been working on it since December, so that's, what, almost a YEAR of hardcore writing. That's pretty insane. Overall, I'm very happy with it and it's my favorite thing that I've ever written. Sad to think that this fic gave me different perspectives of characters; I.E. Celes Chere. I never really liked her, but I liked writing for her in a non-LockexCeles way. Anyway. Here's the rest of the fic (with author's notes anyway!)**

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**38. Bad News in South Figaro**

_Okay, go to South Figaro and see if I notice anything suspicious…_Locke said to himself when the town of South Figaro popped into view. Edgar did warn him to be careful, for he wasn't exactly sure what the meaning of Gestahl's letter was. With all the attacks that were going on with other towns, Edgar was afraid that Gestahl was looking closely at Figaro to be the next target and didn't want to make a false move. Locke figured it would be in his safest interest to get in, find out some information, then get out of there as quickly as possible. Knowing he was around during Xane's arrest and now was a vital asset to the Returners, he was worried that there would be people after him. _I'm sure they know that I can't leak out valuable information if I'm dead…_

He bent over to tie the laces of his boots, and before he stood up, he wiped his hair out of his face and panned the town. He couldn't see any soldiers so he figured the town was currently safe. _Of course, who knows how long that statement will remain correct…_He tried to stay optimistic, but he found it impossible after everything that had happened. _Rachel…Xane…Damn those Imperial bastards…._

With an exhale, he entered the town and tried to stay as calm and relaxed as he could. It was his first time in South Figaro, so he didn't know his way around and it made him even more nervous than he already was. He weaved between buildings and observed the actions of the villagers as he passed them. Thankfully, everyone was walking around doing their daily chores and not doing anything out of the ordinary. He even cracked a smile when he saw a mother scolding her several children. _See, Locke? Everything is fine here! _He thought to himself with a sigh of relief.He noticed a café sign over one of the doors and started to make his way closer. _Hmm, a café. That's a good spot to overhear information. People have a tendency to gossip when they're drunk and not care how loud they're speaking…_

The second he opened the door, the obnoxiously loud music washed through his ears. He grimaced at the volume and looked around. He was disappointed that the place was nearly empty except for an older man who was shamelessly flirting with a waitress and several men sitting at the bar.

"Hey, honey," a scantily clad waitress cooed to Locke, flirtatiously draping her arms over his chest. "What can I get 'cha? Are you looking for anything special? Or are you just looking for someone to show you a good time?"

"Oh, um, I'm fine," he said, stuttering as the girl moved her fingers up to his face. She batted her eyes, causing him to quickly look away from her and politely shrug her off of him. "Excuse me."

Trying not to cringe from the attention, he made his way up to the bar. The bartender was wiping down the counter with a rag and gave him a warm smile as he approached.

"Good afternoon," he said, greeting Locke as he motioned to the bar stools in front of him. "Have a seat and make yourself at home! What can I get for you?"

"I actually would just like a little info," he explained as he sat down on one of the stools. The bartender wiped his hands with the towel and raised an eyebrow.

"Information on what? Our specials?" By the sound in his voice, he was clearly confused to what Locke meant. "Well, we're a small town but it's said that we have the best brewed beer on—"

"No, no, nothing like that," Locke interrupted with a wave of his hand. The confused look remained on the bartender's face, so Locke folded his hands in front of himself and smiled. "It's just that, well, I'm kind of new to this town and I was wondering if the same rumors that were flying around my home town were also being said here."

The bartender's smile started to fade as he put the towel down, rested his hands on the bar, and said, "Every town has its rumors, sir. Where exactly are you from, anyway?"

"Kohlingen," he replied quietly.

"Wasn't there a huge attack on Kohlingen just a few weeks ago?" Even though Locke knew that the man was going to bring that up, his heart still felt as if someone jabbed a dagger through it. "Damn, it's a miracle you're alive. I heard the town is in pretty bad shape."

"Yeah, it is, but we're starting to drift away from the topic," he said quickly, nervously fixing his bandana. "I heard that some of the world's greatest scholars were disappearing from their hometowns. Have you heard anything about that?"

"Hmm, nothing like that around here," the bartender said with a shrug and reached for the towel again. "However, we're only serving paying customers. Therefore, if you're not going to buy anything, I'm going to have to ask you to leave."

"Understandable," Locke said as he stood up and stretched. "Thank you though."

"However," the bartender said, grabbing Locke by the arm and motioning with a finger for him to lean in closer. His eyes darted around the room for a second then whispered, "A ship pulled into the docks today, and it looked like an Imperial ship. I'm not sure if anyone extremely important was on board, so you might want to ask some people around the dock. Maybe they know something about your scholars and could help you out. I didn't tell you this though."

Locke nodded then whispered back, "Thanks." The bartender began wiping down the counter again as Locke turned on his heel and began to walk out of the café. _Hmm, he mentioned the Imperial army in that sentence…does he think that they're involved? _Before he was able to elaborate on his thoughts some more, he heard footsteps running toward him and a tiny female voice following.

"Hey, wait a second!"

Locke turned around to see the waitress that greeted him earlier run toward him. He looked around, and when he faced her again, pointed to himself. "Are you talking to me?"

"Yeah," she said, slightly panting as she caught up to him. "Look, I'm sorry that I was eavesdropping on the conversation you were having with my boss, but I wanted to tell you that I have heard the rumor too. You know, how scholars have been mysteriously disappearing."

"You have?" His eyes went wide and the girl sadly nodded her head. "Oh wow. How have you heard of this?"

"Because my father was this town's greatest scholar," she explained, biting her lip as she looked at the ground. "What happened to him probably happened to other scholars. That's why I had to get this job at this run down café. I hate it here, but I have to help my mother out with bills and such."

"Oh, I'm sorry." He wasn't sure what to say, but his response didn't feel sincere enough to him. "If you don't want to talk about what happened to your father, I'll understand."

"If I recall, I'm the one who ran out here after you. I really don't mind talking about it," she said as she looked up. "It's not like he was murdered or taken against his will. He completely volunteered to go."

"Oh?" Locke questioned, trying to get more information out of her. "Then, do you mind me asking what happened?"

She took a few steps closer to him and nodded her head. "For the last few weeks or so, Imperial ships have been coming to our dock. It's hard to keep an eye on them when I'm constantly at work, but they usually get into town when I go into work, then leave at around the time my shift is over. That's a good eight or nine hours of staying in town. I'm not sure what they do here, but I know that they're not here to shop. That would be a humane thing to do."

Locke gently grabbed his lower lip and looked off to the side in thought. Looking at her out of the corner of his eyes, he said, "So what you're trying to say is that you believe the Empire is involved with the disappearances?"

"I don't think they are, I _know_ they are," she replied with a slight huff. "Even though I'm not sure what they're up to now, they came to our house not long ago to speak with my father. I listened to their conversation and I must say, I'm appalled at my father's decision." She blushed and let out an embarrassed giggle. "As you can see, I have a tendency to eavesdrop."

"Go on," Locke urged with a motion of his fingers.

She nodded and continued. "I didn't really understand why they wanted my father's skills. To be honest with you, I _still_ don't completely understand. The soldiers just told him that scholars from all over were going to Vector to 'find the potential of their skills and make something of themselves.' They mentioned Jidoor, Albrook, Thamasa, and I think Narshe."

Locke furrowed his forehead in thought. "Hmm, that's odd. Those towns don't seem to have anything in common. They're not even on the same continent. Are you sure those were the only towns?"

"Yeah, I remembered what towns they were because I tried to think of similarities between them, but I couldn't find any," she added with a shrug. "Anyway, mixed in their multi hour conversation, the soldiers mentioned something about extensive research on some old rocks or something." She tapped her lip with her finger and looked up at the sky in thought. "Now, what were they called?"

Locke inhaled sharply at her sentence, then furrowed his forehead as he squeaked out, "Espers?"

"Yes!" The girl snapped her fingers and smiled at him. "That's what it was!"

"Fantastic," Locke drawled, putting his hand to his forehead then rubbing his face. He looked between his fingers and saw her confused look, so he put his hand back down by his side. "I'm sorry, please continue."

"My father first turned them down, but when they offered to pay him triple his yearly salary, he changed his mind in an instant. He, um, packed up and left with them that very day." She looked up at Locke and exhaled. "That's what happened here, so I'm assuming that the Empire did that to the other towns as well. More people know about it than you'd think, but they just want to keep it quiet. It's basically a shame to this town that my father was persuaded with money so easily. He's usually not like that, but…oh well."

"Money has the power to do that to people," Locke admitted with a smirk. "I'm sure you're right though. I bet that's exactly what happened to the other towns."

"I wish I could tell you more, but unfortunately, that's all I know," she said as Locke nodded at her. "I just hope I was somewhat helpful to you and answered some of your questions."

"You helped me out a lot, thanks," he said as the girl continued to blush. "Oh, one more thing. I do want to make a stop at the item shop before I go though. Where would that be?"

"Oh, um, it's on the eastern side of town," she explained, pointing with her index finger. "The town's layout is kind of strange, so you have to go north first, then go south. When you hit the water, go east and you'll find some stairs. You can't miss them!"

"Thanks again," he said as he started to follow her directions.

"Wait," she exclaimed, causing him to stop again.

"What is it?"

"I'm sorry for hitting on you." Locke smiled at her once again, causing her to look down at the ground and dig at the dirt with the toe of her shoe. "It's kind of in the job guidelines and it's embarrassing."

"Not a problem," he said with a chuckle. "Take care."

"You too!"

He watched the young girl hop back into the café then overheard several gruff voices walking behind him. He turned on his heel and saw several soldiers walking toward the dock area, much like bees around their hive. Curious to what was going on, he decided that the item shop could wait and stealthily made his way closer to where the soldiers were, remaining unseen.

"And you're sure all this information is accurate?"

By the tone in the voice, Locke assumed that he overheard something important, so he hid behind a house. He slowly peered around the wall to see an elegantly dressed man talking to two Imperial soldiers. One soldier looked as though he had higher rank, so Locke presumed he was a commander of some sort. The man they were talking to cautiously looked around to make sure no one was eavesdropping, then turned back toward the soldiers. _What's this we have here? _Locke thought with a smirk and a quiet chuckle.

"Yes, I'm positive," the elegantly dressed man said with a huff. Locke narrowed his eyes and continued to listen. "There is no reason why I would lie to you about this information. Heh, especially at a price like this."

"You know how important the girl is to the Empire, so if we find out you're lying…" The commander's hand reached out toward the man's shirt collar and gripped tightly. Locke could see the man tremble and he wished he had heard the conversation from the beginning.

"I'm doing it for the benefit of the people of Figaro," the man continued to explain, his voice wavering. "If that…magitek riding girl is on the loose, I don't want people in this town harmed."

The lesser ranked soldier let out a harrumph as the commander released his grip on the man. "What makes you believe she's at the castle?"

Locke's eyes widened as the man said with a chuckle, "Have you ever _met_ King Edgar? Beautiful women flock to him. He's suave, charming, young, handsome, and not to mention rich. Girls line up outside the door to work at his feet. Trust me when I say that she'll be there."

"Dammit…"Locke cursed under his breath, putting his hand over his mouth. _He's trying to set up Edgar! _

"And if she's not?" The commander asked, taking another step toward the man. Locke watched as the rich man's gaze went to the commander's hand, which tightly grasped the hilt of his sword, as if he was ready to lunge out and attack.

"And if she's not, well…" He nervously trailed off to think of an alternate plan. After a few seconds, he slyly looked at the men and tilted his head. "You can set up your troops here in South Figaro if she's not at the castle. How's that? That way, you can catch her if she tries to pass through here. She'll be bound to stop here if she walks through those caves without stopping at Figaro Castle first. If things go according to plan, you'll get her back and the people of this town remain safe. I heard what she did in Maranda, and I don't want her to do the same thing to South Figaro. I'm sure I'm not the only person here who thinks this way, so it's a win-win situation if you ask me."

"No one asked for your opinion," the soldier snapped. He looked up as his commander put his hand on his shoulder to calm him down. "Sir?"

"Here's what we'll do," the commander began to explain as he moved his hand from his henchman to rub his chin in thought. "We haven't any other leads, and you know Kefka will be pissed if we return to Vector without any ideas on where his precious magic user is. Therefore, we'll listen to you. As soon as Gestahl hears of our plans, I'm sure he'll send Kefka to check out Figaro Castle."

"What about my money?" The man asked, holding out his hand as a hint. With a chuckle, the commander reached into his arm for some gold pieces. The man made a face as he quickly counted what the commander gave him. "You insult me. You promised a hell of a lot more than five hundred."

"Consider this a down deposit," the commander explained. "We don't have the girl in our hands yet, so you can't have the promised amount until we do. Besides, you're the richest man in town. I'm sure you can wait a while."

With a sigh, the man nodded. "Very well. I better return to before my absence is noticed. You won't tell anyone that I was the one who gave you the information, right? I'm a very respectable man here in South Figaro and I'd never want to be looked down upon."

"You're betraying your king for money you don't need. What's worse than that?" The rich man looked down at his feet at the soldier's sentence and blushed considerably.

"Nevertheless, your secret is safe with us," the commander confirmed, patting the rich man on the back. With a nod, the man looked around a final time then walked back into town.

"What a fucking idiot," the soldier said once the rich man was out of earshot, causing the commander to chuckle. "He just gave Gestahl a reason to invade not only South Figaro, but the castle as well. Kefka's wanted to investigate King Edgar for quite some time, and now there's nothing stopping him."

"C'mon, let's go back to Vector. I'm sure Gestahl will be pleased to hear our wonderful news," the commander said, leading his soldier up the dock and onto the ship.

Blinking his eyes several times, Locke tried to comprehend everything that just happened. _Kefka's magic user? Magitek riding girl? Is this the same girl that Xane and his sister were talking about that day in Jidoor? Is she…missing? What the hell's going on? _After a few minutes of resting the back of his head against the brick house in shock, he exhaled and whispered, "Shit, I gotta tell Edgar."


	39. The Returners

**This is the last 'before game' chapter, and I like how I ended it. Tee hee. I like this chapter actually…even if it is only kind of a filler. It fills in a lot of the blanks between Locke, Edgar, and the Returners that is brought up in the game but never explained. Therefore, I did it myself. D It's so amusing to incorporate tiny details into this fic. (Psst…all these little things will be put into my writing journal over the next few days. I hope. The link is my 'website' on my bio page) **

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**39. The Returners**

"Wait a minute, wait a minute, wait a minute," Edgar sputtered out as he put his hand to his forehead. Locke had explained what he saw in South Figaro when he arrived back at the castle several moments earlier, and he was sure that Edgar was going to pass out. His face turned ghastly white and he began pacing the tiled floor of the throne room as Locke spoke. He was so flabbergasted that his hands were flailing as he talked, almost hitting the Chancellor who was standing behind him. "Are you telling me that the Empire is not only going into towns and bribing their scholars, but they're also keeping them in Vector to do research on Espers?"

Locke sighed from where he was sitting and stretched out his legs. "I hate to say it, but that's exactly what I'm telling you."

With a quick exhale, Edgar walked up the steps to his throne and sat down. Locke watched every movement, almost afraid that Edgar was so shocked of the entire situation. _If he's this worried about it…This situation is a million times worse than I'm thinking it is…_His own thought made him bring his hand to his mouth to bite his nails.

After a second of silence, Edgar threw up his hand when he found the correct words to say. "_And…_Not only that, but now soldiers are bribing _my_ citizens for information on that witch too?" Locke nodded again and Edgar rested his head on the back of his throne. "I need to sit down."

"You _are_ sitting down, your highness," the Chancellor pointed out, raising an eye brow.

Edgar lifted his head back up and noticed that the Chancellor was right. "Oh, I am. Good for me."

"The worst part about all of it is that the soldiers kept talking about the witch and how Kefka was looking for her," Locke added, watching Edgar nervously drum his fingers against his leg. "So that means that she must've escaped somehow."

"It's now a dangerous world to have someone with so much power walking around freely," Edgar said, his voice half-muffled due to his hand playing with his lower lip. "Kefka was making a monster out of her."

_Oh boy…_Locke thought, feeling his pulse start to race. "I don't like how you said that. What exactly was Kefka doing?"

"From what I've heard, Gestahl found the girl when she was only a baby. A few years old at most. He…did something to do her and now she follows him around like a lap dog," Edgar explained, Locke hanging on every word. "The thing that confuses me though, is, like I said, Gestahl let him have complete control over the girl. Kefka refused to have her out of his sight, and she did orders for him. He could ask her to throw a stick and she would ask him 'how far?'"

"Yikes," Locke managed to say. "What's the confusing part of that? She probably wanted to just expand her horizons and attack without having someone breathe down her neck."

"No, his majesty is right, something is missing here," the Chancellor said, shaking his head. He walked closer to Edgar's throne and Edgar nodded.

"There was something about her when she attacked," Edgar added, blankly looking off to the side. "It was like she did it without thinking twice, almost on impulse, and always on Kefka's orders. Take the attack on Maranda, for instance."

"It's funny that you mention that," Locke chimed in as Edgar's sentence sparked something in his memory. "That's not the first time that I heard that. Xane mentioned something, as did Vaughn, and the soldiers that I eavesdropped on in South Figaro. I heard that the Imperial army attacked, but what exactly happened there?"

Edgar looked off to the side and quickly let out the breath he was holding. "The girl…Kefka wanted to test her true strength, so as the soldiers were torching Maranda, he told her to burn them. So she obeyed and followed the order, resulting in approximately 50 of them killed in under five minutes."

"I thought it was three minutes, Your Highness," the Chancellor corrected him.

"Oh yeah, you're right," he said, painfully agreeing. "Banon's letter did say three minutes, didn't it? Three minutes or five minutes, whichever it was, that's still an impressive time for destroying that many lives."

"Kefka told her to burn their own Imperial soldiers?" Locke asked, narrowing his eyes as Edgar's face remained exanimate. "You've gotta be kidding me. Why would Kefka do something like that?"

"Banon will be able to tell you more than I will," Edgar said, standing up to again pace the floor. "I think it's about time that you made your way to the Returner's Hideout and talked to Banon. If you hear anything from him, report back to me and keep me informed."

"Of course," Locke replied as the king walked closer to him. "Is there anything I should be warned about before I met Banon?"

"Not really," Edgar stated with a flick of his wrist. "Why do you ask?"

"Well," Locke began with a chuckle, fixing his bandana. "I remember when I first joined Quantz, Xane explained a million guidelines when it came to Vaughn."

"That's Vaughn though," Edgar laughed and shook his head in amusement. "Although Banon is a little stuffy, Vaughn doesn't deal with anyone's shit and Xane just wanted you to know that. Besides, you had to win Vaughn's approval before Banon would give you a second look over."

Locke raised an eyebrow at Edgar's sentence and had to think about it. "You know, I never thought about it until you just brought it up, but Banon had his eyes on me to begin with, didn't he? I mean, Vaughn sent Xane out to find me that one day, so it means that he knew about me."

"Well, I think it was more or less that Vaughn had heard about you and told Banon about you," Edgar clarified, pointing as he spoke. "I'm not sure how, but he heard about your reputation in Kohlingen and sought you out. He knew about your potential long before Banon did."

"Oh." Locke shifted his weight and waited for Edgar to speak again. After several seconds of silence, he started toward the door, speaking over his shoulder, "The Returner's Hideout is by the Lete River, correct? Any other specific directions?"

Edgar nodded, walked up to him and shook his hand. "No, that's about it, I believe. I'll send a letter via carrier pigeon to Banon so he's aware of your arrival. OH! Three sets of three light knocks. That's the secret knock."

"Thanks," Locke said with a smile.

"I'll help you to the door," the Chancellor volunteered, catching up with Locke and opening the throne room door for him.

"Take care of yourself," Edgar said to Locke with a wave. "If you see anyone who looks like a deranged clown, stay clear of him."

Locke looked back at Edgar and gave him a confused look. "Well, that was the most random bit of advice I've ever heard, but I'll remember to keep it in mind."

"His highness is making fun of Kefka," the Chancellor informed him. Even though he had disappointment in his voice, he still wore a tiny smile. "He does it frequently, so we just smile at him and walk away."

Locke chuckled and heard a knock at the door. The Chancellor, Edgar, and Locke all furrowed their brows and the Chancellor opened the door. A Figaro guard stood there and saluted. "Your majesty, the priestess of Doma is here to see you as you requested. We directed her to the library for the time being."

"Oh yeah!" Edgar sat up straight in his throne and smoothed down his hair. "I completely forgot about that." He looked at his Chancellor and said, "Do you mind bringing her here?"

The Chancellor nodded. "Of course, your highness."

"Well, Edgar, it looks like you will reach double digits in the fiancée category at record speed," Locke quipped with a smirk, causing the Chancellor to stifle his laughter.

Edgar raised an eyebrow, then began laughing. "I'm not even going to argue with that one. You've known me for less than a day and you already have me figured out. That's quite impressive, Locke."

Shaking his head, the Chancellor cleared his throat and said, "I'll lead Locke to the entrance and then I'll escort the priestess in."

"Take care, Edgar," Locke said with a wave to Edgar, who went back to fixing his hair, and followed the Chancellor to the entrance of the castle. "Thanks for everything. I'll be sure to keep in touch."

"Please do," the Chancellor replied. "Go through the cave to the southeast to get to South Figaro."

"Will do," Locke said with a nod. Breaking out into a smile, he added, "As long as you keep Edgar out of trouble."

The Chancellor chuckled, shook his head and sighed. "I've been trying my best. Take care, Locke."

With a nod, Locke shoved his hands into his pockets and followed the Chancellor's directions.

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_That's it…_Locke thought when he saw the opening in the mountain. _That's the Returner's Hideout…_ He bit at his lip and felt his palms sweat out of nervousness. He had never been so nervous in his life and he wasn't exactly sure why. He reminded himself to breathe as he walked up to the door and performed the secret knock.

A little slot in the door opened and he saw a pair of eyes look at him in a peculiar manner. Locke wasn't sure what to do, so he gave the eyes a friendly wave. "Uh, hi. I hope that was the right knock."

The eyes narrowed and the man said in a gruff voice, "Who the hell are you?"

"Locke Cole?" He swallowed at the same time that he spoke, so his name more or less squeaked out. "King Edgar said that he was going to send a letter to let you know that I was arriving."

The confused look that was in the eyes changed to one of, what Locke assumed, friendliness. "Ah yes!" He shut the tiny slot and Locke heard the bolt release from the door. When the door opened, the man motioned for Locke to come in. "I'm sorry about that. You can never be too careful nowadays."

"Of course," Locke replied, shaking the man's hand and he had a quick look around. To his surprise, the hideout looked very similar to the Quantz hideout and he let out a smile. "Am I supposed to see Banon now or is there a scheduled time that he would like to see me?"

"I believe he wanted to see you as soon as possible," the man said, leading Locke up a set of stairs and pointed to a door. "You can just walk in, it's all right."

Feeling slightly uncomfortable, Locke blinked in surprise. "Just…walk right in? He's not going to get pissed off at me or anything, is he?"

"He knows that you're coming, so of course he won't be," the man explained, gesturing toward the door again.

"Okay…" Locke said with uncertainty and opened the door. When he walked into the next room, he saw an elderly gentleman sitting at a table, composing a letter. The scene was all too familiar to him and he felt as though he was reliving his first moments of meeting Vaughn. A chuckle escaped his lips as the man looked up at him and smiled. "Hi, I'm Locke Cole. I've come from Figaro Castle."

"Yes, I'm aware," the man said, tapping a piece a paper that was adjacent to his ink well. "King Edgar sent me a letter of everything that you've discovered when you visited South Figaro and I must say this puts a new twist in our research on the Empire. Now more and more things are starting to be aimed toward Kefka instead of Gestahl. Kefka's power is growing, Locke. It's just a matter of time before his power…" He shook his head at his own thoughts and exhaled. "No matter. We'll worry about that if the time comes."

_Well, it's good to know that there isn't the awkward introduction and he went straight to the point…_ He thought with a smile. "This girl," Locke started, watching Banon stand up. "This 'witch.' Why is she so important to the Empire? Just because she has the power to destroy and not feel remorse about it?"

Banon walked over to Locke and pursed his lips. "I do believe there is more to this situation than the eye can see. No human, no matter how empty inside, can kill without feeling remorse. Hatred can burn so deeply that it ruins the soul, but there will always be remorse. Especially from an 18 year old girl who obeys orders at the drop of a hat." Locke remained quiet as Banon sadly shook his head and turned around. "We just need to do some more investigating. We have several spies in every town, so if the Empire is going to try something new, we'll hear about it as fast as a carrier pigeon can fly here."

"How is an organization like this able to stay so under wraps?" Locke asked, half to himself. "Quantz was able to stay quiet because we were only treasure hunters; a group of men who try to find old treasures for a living. No big deal, right? But this is completely different. The Returners try to figure out the way the entire world is run. That's a little deeper than looking for someone's old diamonds. Is it by sheer luck?"

"No," Banon stated, his voice matter of fact. "I do believe there are more people in this world who are unhappy with the way things are than one would think. Most people spy on the Empire as it is. We simply seek out those people and have them help us. No one wants to live under a dictatorship, and that is exactly what Gestahl is running."

Innocently looking up at Banon, Locke couldn't help but ask more questions. "Has it…always been like this? Have I just been blind to the entire situation?"

"I must admit that things have gotten worse ever since Kefka grew to be a stronger asset to Gestahl." Locke gave Banon a queer look, so he continued to explain. "Kefka is trying to gain more power and this is the last thing that we want to have happen."

"I understand," Locke replied with a nod.

"Very well." Banon began to walk toward the door to his chambers, motioning Locke to follow. "There isn't anything that we can do right now, plus it is rather late, so I will show you to your room and let you get settled in."

Without another word, Locke followed Banon through a few doors to a very small room with a single bed. As Banon was about to leave, Locke said, "Thanks for everything, Banon."

The elderly man turned around and gave Locke a smile. "Don't go thanking me just yet, but you're welcome. Have a pleasant night."

Locke nodded and watched as Banon walked out then shut the door. Looking around, he exhaled and tried to sort out his thoughts. His room was much like the one that he had in Quantz, but he knew that this room was a new start for him. _My chance to find out what has happened with my life…_He thought as he kicked off his shoes and placed them by his bed.

He walked over to the small table on one of the sides of the room and he placed his dagger on it. Even though the once beautiful dagger was starting to look a little tired, Locke couldn't find it in his heart to get rid of it. He found it the day that Xane was looking for him, and he couldn't get rid of the memories.

_Speaking of memories…_He thought as he dug his hand into one of his pockets and felt for the chain that was buried deeply. As gently as he could, he pulled out the necklace and looked at the ring that the chain secured. _I will avenge you, Rachel. I promise you that I will…_

Placing the ring on the table next to his dagger, he turned off the lights and went to sleep.

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Locke slowly opened his eyes and it took him a second to remember where he was. He sat up in his bed and looked around; wondering what woke him up in the first place. Letting out a yawn, he heard the sound again and this time was able to recognize it as a knock at his door.

"Come in," Locke cried out, quickly throwing on his pants. The door opened and Banon walked through, causing Locke to look at his watch to see what time it was. _It's only 4 am! What the hell? _He thought, as he pleasantly smiled at Banon. "Good morning, Banon," he stated, quite confused. _Although one might technically call it night still…_

"Good morning," the elderly man replied hastily, shutting the door behind him. He walked up to Locke and held out his hand, which held a piece of paper. Locke narrowed his eyes as he took the paper.

"What's this?" He asked, inspecting it.

"Directions on how to get to Narshe," he explained, Locke's eyes widening.

"Narshe?" He tried not to show his surprise, but it was hard to conceal. "Isn't Narshe on the northern continent?"

Banon shook his head and pointed to the paper again. "Yes, it is. Those are detailed directions to get to Arvis' house. He is also in the Returners. I need you to go see him as soon as possible."

"O…kay," Locke said, still rather confused to what was going on. "Any other specific directions?"

"No," Banon said quickly, watching Locke look over the map. "Just make sure that you follow those and don't go straight into town. My directions send you through the mines; it'll be the safest route. Apparently there will be soldiers there, so stay on your guard until you get to Arvis' house in case the soldiers get restless and move to the mines. Understood?"

With a nod, Locke replied, "Yes," then walked toward the table by the lamp. Hoping Banon didn't notice, he put the necklace into his pocket, not wanting any questions asked. Thankfully, Banon was looking back toward the wall and not paying attention to what Locke was doing.

"He knows that you will be arriving soon," Banon explained as Locke put on a shirt and quickly gathered the rest of his things. "He asked for some assistance, so I told him that I would be sending you. I trust you on this."

Locke was touched and couldn't help but smile. "I won't let you down."

"I know you won't, but follow me." Quietly, Banon led Locke to the back door. Locke was surprised to see how many Returners were up to stay on guard, but politely nodded at them when they passed. Once they reached the door, Banon opened it, but didn't let Locke walk through. "The quickest way to Narshe by the current of the Lete River. Take this raft and you'll end up docking close to the town, but far enough not to been seen." Locke nodded once again and Banon said. "Oh, one more thing. You're going to have to sneak into the mines. There is a switch on the outside of the mountain wall, southwest of the town. You won't be able to miss it. Now then, please make your way to Narshe as quickly as possible. This is a rather urgent situation. Arvis will give you further directions when you arrive."

"Got it," Locke said with a nod. Banon moved out of the way and let Locke through, quickly saying goodbye before shutting the door again. Once he was outside the cave, he looked at the directions that were in his hands and walked to the edge of the dock, which was about fifteen feet above the water. With a gulp, he saw the raft that Banon mentioned. It was decent size, but he wasn't exactly comfortable about jumping off a ledge and praying that he made it on the raft safely. The thought of sailing wasn't comforting to him either and he prayed that he wouldn't get sea sick.

Closing his eyes, he climbed over the ledge then let go, luckily making it on the raft. Exhaling in relief, he began to untie the raft from the post it was attached to. When there was one knot left, a look of confusion washed over his face and he muttered, "I didn't even ask what I was going to Narshe for…" With a shrug, he undid the final knot and the raft started to move. "Oh well, I guess it doesn't matter now. Whatever happens, happens."


	40. A New Hope

**Funny story about this chapter actually. I wrote it in about…oooh…February and I battled with it for a long time. I originally was going to make this chapter the start of Part II of Remembering Rachel before I came up with the idea of mixing the 'in game' and 'before game' chapters. Heh, that was A LONG TIME AGO! Of course, I added more onto it, but that's beside the point. It's so weird to think I wrote this that long ago and it's chapter 40. Yikes! Anyway…I like the way this chapter turned out, so that makes me happy.**

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**40. A New Hope**

It had been a little over a year since the world fell and since then, nothing had been the same. The few who remained to roam the world wished for death due to the fact that there wasn't much to live for. The few trees left were dying, the grass turned to brown patches of earth, the water transformed into a sickly shade of purple, and most of the towns were leveled. The houses that remained were in poor shape, many unstable and dangerous to live in.

Kefka was now in complete control of the world, and bringing it down to what the name of the new world suggested; ruin. He built himself a multistory tower in the middle of the southern continent, and burned cities with the Ray of Judgment whenever he felt like it. Although Locke hated the Empire before the rise of Kefka, he vowed that he would do everything in his power to make him pay for the hell that he put himself and everyone else from the world through.

Of course, he knew that he couldn't do it by himself. When the airship broke apart after leaving the floating continent, he woke up in a strange area. Although he soon found that it was near Narshe, he was still alone and, for the first time in his life, hated it. He missed his friends that he traveled with for so long and every day he prayed that they were alive and well. He devoted himself to hunt for treasures again by himself, mostly to search for hints that everyone was okay and to once again search for a way to revive Rachel. He sat at the bar of the café, his drink in front of him, and stared off into space as he was lost in his thoughts.

Man, I hope everyone's all right…He tapped his fingers against the hard wood and sighed. It's been so long…and I haven't heard from anyone. Am I…the only one who survived? It was a rather long fall from the airship to the ground…

"I don't know about you, but I have been raking in the treasures that have been dug up by the continents rearranging." Locke rested his elbows on the bar and held his drink close to his lips as he overheard a conversation that several men were having at a table close by. He didn't want to eavesdrop, but knowing that the men were being rather boisterous, it was hard not to hear their conversation.

"Me too, man! I heard that was some glowing rock in the mines!" A dark haired man exclaimed as he slammed his now empty beer mug onto the table. Locke whipped his head up started to realize that the man was talking about magicite. Or maybe it's still in Esper form…He had heard so many people gossiping about magic and magicite recently that it usually didn't faze him anymore. However, this specific occurrence grabbed his attention as he drank from his glass. Who would've thought that all this would be brought back into existence…He thought as he listened more attentively.

"Wait, wasn't there some big controversy about that thing last year or something like that?" Another man asked as the rest of them shrugged their shoulders.

"It sounds vaguely familiar," the dark haired man said as he rubbed his scruffy chin with his hand. "I actually think it's what started this whole mess with Kefka anyway."

"I wouldn't speak so loudly, my friend," the man to his left warned with a gentle nudge from his elbow. "Kefka's spies are everywhere. This town is barely standing on its feet as it is. We don't need that Ray of Judgment thing to fry this town down to nothin'."

"Okay, new subject then." Locke had to chuckle to himself as the men all awkwardly looked around to make sure Kefka's men weren't watching them. You can never be too careful anymore…He thought with another drink from his glass. Nowadays it seems as though the walls have ears and whisper secrets to the Empire…

"I heard that there was a cave in some mountains to the south that is supposed to have something quite valuable in it." Locke figured they were treasure hunters by the way they were communicating, so he felt it would beneficial to keep listening. Maybe I can find something that'll occupy me for a while…

"Whaddaya suppose is in it?" One of the men asked as the rest of them shrugged. "How come I haven't heard about any findings from it yet?"

"Who knows? Maybe no one can find the entrance," a red haired man said as he ran his fingers through his greasy long hair. "I would like to find out more about it though. I'm kind of intrigued now."

"I heard it was another one of those shiny, glowing rocks like the one that was found in the caves here," a fourth man said as Locke swallowed. More magicite…"It's supposed to have some kind of power to it or something."

"A diamond or something similar?" The dark haired man questioned as he waved the barmaid over to refill his drink.

"Diamonds don't have power, ya moron," the fourth man clarified. "It's supposed to do something. Not sure what, but I'm pretty damn curious."

"Why hasn't anyone gone down there and looked yet?" The third man narrowed his eyes at his own question. "You would think that if there was something of great worth down there, people would've gone looking for it already."

"There is a rumor," a man began to say from across the room, the other men unaware that he was listening to the entire conversation. He had his arms on the table with his hands folded together and was wearing a cloak with a hood that covered up most of his face. The part of the hood that didn't cover his face was shrouded by the shadow, completely masking his face. Locke looked over at the man and sensed a kind of familiarity from him. No, it can't be…he thought as the four men at the table turned their heads toward the suspicious man. The mystery man chuckled slightly as he stood up and started to walk over to the men at the table. The man had a slight limp to his stride and used a cane for support, causing Locke to narrow his eyes.

"It's a cave that contains a treasure worth more than life itself," he continued as he leaned rested one of his hands against the men's table. The men were so interested in the story that they put their glasses down and gave the man their full attention.

"Why's that?" The red haired man asked.

"Because…" There was a dramatic pause as the man walked away from the table and over to Locke. Locke was slightly hesitant to why the man was walking over to him, but gasped when the man put down the hood, revealing his face. "It contains the power to restore."

"Xane!" Locke cried out as he recognized the man's face. He hopped down from his seat and gave the older man a hug as he felt his eyes tear up. The other treasure hunters started to discuss the recent news amongst themselves as Locke and Xane talked.

"Hey, Locke," Xane replied as he hugged his old friend tightly. "How have you been?"

"I haven't seen you since that day in Jidoor," he answered as his eyes went downcast at the memory. "I wasn't sure what happened to you and no one seemed to have any answers."

"First off, they shipped me to Vector right away so I could speak with Gestahl and Kefka. Well, in case you haven't realized it, Gestahl and Kefka are very smart, but they completely believed me when I apologized and said I wanted to work for the Empire again. Dumbasses. Anyway, they didn't waste any time with giving me a new assignment. They wanted me to go look for the young woman that had escaped," Xane began to explain as Locke's eyes went wide. "Yeah, I knew that the Returners knew about her, but I wasn't sure what happened with that."

Locke exhaled in small puffs as he took a sip of his drink. When he put the glass down, he looked straight ahead and spoke. "Her name's Terra." When Xane nodded, he continued. "Basically the second I reached the Returners' hideout, Banon had me go out and look for her. Well, I found her and managed to protect her for a while, but…yeah. Then the world fell apart, and I guess that's that."

"I figured the Returners had it under control," Xane said with a chuckle and drummed his fingers against the bar. "Well, when I 'went out to look for her,' I took two soldiers with me. When we got out of Vector, I kicked their asses and used my Imperial identity to get on a boat and sail to the Kohlingen area. I went to Quantz, spoke to Vaughn, and then we decided that it would be the best for me to stay there."

"Wait a second," Locke chuckled at Xane's story. "You're telling me you've been out of the hands of the Empire for an entire year because you knocked a couple of guys out?"

"Damn straight," Xane replied with a smile. "I was able to hide from the Empire for a long time while I was at Quantz the first time, so I assumed it would be safe the second time as well. It was."

"I'll be damned," Locke said with another sip of his drink. "And here I was thinking that you were being brutally tortured or something like that. I should've known that you would be able to weasel your way out of it."

"You know me," Xane said with a confident laugh as he patted Locke on the back. "I'm proud of you though; you didn't do something stupid like try to rescue me."

"I wanted to, all right," Locke admitted as he remembered the conversation that he had with Vaughn. "I was about ready to go right back up to Jidoor, but Vaughn talked me out of it. Like I said, I should've known that you would've been fine. I managed to get a little information from Celes Chere, but due to the fact that she wasn't sure of what happened, she wasn't much help."

"Oh, you met up with Celes again, eh?" Xane chuckled at the thought of his sister. "How did you manage that one?"

"She was proclaimed a traitor a while back and I happened to run into her. I helped her escape and she helped the Returners a great deal with some insight of the Empire." The grim look stayed on his face as he sat back down in his seat and looked down at the bar. "I, uh, haven't seen her since the world came undone. I haven't seen anyone that I traveled with."

"Ha, I warned her that the Empire was filled with a bunch of cowards, but did she listen to me? No, of course not. Very typical of Celes; she has to learn everything the hard way." He shook his head and tapped his fingers against his cane. "She's strong though. She'll be all right."

"I hope so," Locke muttered quietly. With a sigh, he decided to change the subject to a happier one and motioned Xane to sit next to him. Carefully, Xane hobbled to the seat, making Locke worry. "How about you, man? What happened?"

"Oh, my leg?" He let out a chuckle as he patted his leg. "It happened about a year ago when the continent came crashing down. I was on a hunt when a huge rock fell on my leg, fracturing it. The doctor didn't set it correctly, so it healed wrong and left me with this here limp."

"You're still alive though," Locke said happily with a smile. "It's been so long since I've seen you and I wasn't sure how you were."

"All right, Locke. We already went through this and heard my explanation, so enough with the sappy and heartwarming bullshit. Heh, you didn't even understand what I said about a minute and a half ago did you?" Locke gave Xane a blank look that answered his question. "I didn't think so."

"Xane, I was just so happy to see you that I wasn't paying attention to anything," he said honestly as he fixed the bandana around his head. "What did you say?"

"I said I knew what was in that cave that those guys were discussing over there," he started as he motioned with his hands. "You're still a treasure hunter, right?"

"Yeah," Locke replied as he took a sip of his drink. "I kind of put it on a temporary hold when I joined the Returners, but now that I don't know where any of them are, I guess I'm on my own. I'm not even sure if the Returners exist anymore. Therefore, I've been traveling around by myself doing the treasure hunter gig again."

"Good, you're going to want to do this hunt then." Xane quickly ordered a drink as he continued. "I know your grandma used to tell you stories about magic and things to that nature, correct?"

"Yeah, before she died. I was still very young so I didn't even think anything of it," he responded with a shrug. "It's funny because I became so in touch with what she was discussing. Magicite, Espers…they're all real."

"Of course they're real," Xane said as he took a few long gulps of his drink. "How else do you think I've been able to do magic for all these years?"

"At the expense of an Esper." He didn't say it as a question, he said it as a statement. He gasped as he had an epiphany. "It all makes sense now." Locke tapped his finger against his chin as he leaned forward against the bar. He smiled at Xane as he proudly announced, "I, uh, can do several spells myself, ya know. I learned from using magicite."

"Really?" Xane was intrigued from his friend's statement and chuckled. "Now you don't have to be so damn jealous of me."

"I was not jealous," Locke clarified with a laugh. "Okay, maybe a little bit, but now I can hold my own."

"Look, man," Xane said slowly, putting a hand on Locke's shoulder. "I know it might not mean much now, but I need to apologize for something."

"What's that?" Locke asked as Xane slowly exhaled.

"For telling you to leave Kohlingen the day that…" he trailed off, not wanting to finish his sentence. Locke didn't have to ask him what day he was referring to, for he knew. "I need to make it up to you."

He nervously shifted in his seat for he didn't like to be reminded of the memory. It was so long ago…it still shouldn't be this close to my heart… "Oh, look, you don't have to say anything. You were right in the long run and—"

"Well, I kept the promise that I made to you a while ago and I found something," he said as he interrupted Locke.

"What's that?"

"A way to bring her back."


	41. The Phoenix Cave

**Ahh yes, the chapter that caused me the most issues. This was the final chapter that I had to write for this fic…so it's quite an accomplishment…but I put it off until the last minute because I knew how big of a bitch it was going to be to write. I thought that if I could get it to 1500 words I would be satisfied…but it ended up being almost 3500. I actually kind of rushed the ending a little bit because it was starting to drag. This is probably the most anal chapter that I did write for this fic…because it's basically a walkthrough of the Phoenix Cave. Literally. It's kind of scary actually. Anyway…Oh yeah. Locke talks to himself a lot. I had to incorporate dialogue so it wouldn't seem too dry…but…it makes me giggle because of how much he DOES talk to himself. Oh well. I still like the way the chapter turned out.**

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**41. The Phoenix Cave**

Looking around his surroundings nervously, Locke put away the warp stone that he used to get into the cave. A mixture of emotions were swirling around inside of him, so he swallowed with a gulp. It was rather bright in the area where he was at, so he looked up to see the yellow hued sky through a huge hole. "What's the point of that when no one even knows that this mountain contains a hidden cave…" He thought aloud as some birds flew overhead.

As he started to walk forward, he realized that there wasn't a door. Instead, it was a rock wall. He furrowed his forehead as he walked to one side of the wall and pushed on it. It was solid. He had the same luck when he tried the other side. When he stood on his tiptoes, he could see an opening to what he assumed to be another level of the cave.

"I wonder if I could climb this wall…" He mumbled, inspecting it to make sure that it was going to hold him. Rubbing his hands together, he walked closer to the front of the wall, figuring that it didn't look very steep. As soon as he stepped right in front of it, he heard a loud thud coming from his left. The sound caused him to grab his dagger and jump backward in a fighting stance. No sooner than he moved, the ground started to shake from a louder noise. Holding his fighting position, he waited for something to pound its way through the wall, but nothing happened. The room remained quiet.

His heart was beating quickly as he walked around the center rock to see what the sound was. Nothing looked out of the ordinary, so he calmed himself down and walked back to his climbing position. The sound happened again.

"…The hell?" He cried out, jumping back. This time, the light from the sky reflected off of something by his feet, catching his attention. Crouching down, he looked at it; it was a square metal plate that was just big enough for him to step on. When he pressed it with his hands, he could feel a slight springing action, but it wasn't enough to do anything. "Hmm…"

Standing up, he placed one foot on it, then hesitantly the other to put his full weight on the plate. The thud occurred and without moving his feet, he looked around the rock to see an opening in the wall. A smile appeared on his face and he almost ran toward it. However, the second he took his foot off, the wall slammed down again.

He rushed over to the wall and due to lack of ideas, pushed on it with all his might, then yelled, "Come on, I know you can open!" No matter how hard he pushed, nothing happened, so he crossed his arms, and kicked it. "Dammit!" With a huff, he walked around the small area to see that there wasn't anything to put on the plate that would be heavy enough to keep the door open.

"Now what?" He muttered with a sigh. An idea struck into his head and he groaned that he didn't think of it before. Reaching inside for his warp stone, he held it up before the wall. Just as it was starting to illuminate, he retracted it away from the wall and looked at it. A sly smile appeared on his face and with a chuckle he put the stone in his pocket again. Not wiping the smile off of his face, he put his hand over the wall and with a few words, magic burst out of his hand and the wall disappeared, allowing him to walk through. Looking at his hand, he chuckled and said, "Just like Xane used to do…"

He climbed the stone steps and saw that the next room was much bigger than the first and broke into two paths. He randomly picked the one to his left and started to follow it, smiling when he saw that there was a treasure chest tucked in the wall. Humming, he started to walk closer to it, his tune slowing down when he got about three feet in front of it. Something's not right. The ground sounds strange…He thought to himself, tapping the ground before him with his toe. As he tapped his toe, he started to see the ground give way, revealing the floor underneath.

"Okay, fine. I won't get that treasure chest," he said with an exhale. "I'll have to come back to it when I feel like falling and dying."

With a groan, he made his way around the curve and saw that there were stone steps that lead down to another metal plate. "Well, that'll be pointless since I realized I can use magic as my key to open doors," he said, looking at his hand and letting out a proud chuckle.

Regaining the bounce to his step again, he retraced his steps and reached the other path, his eyes widening when he saw several rows of spikes guarding it. Just to test out how sharp they were, he gently touched the tip of one with his finger. Even though he hardly applied any pressure, the metal spike cut through his first few layers of skin and drew several drops of blood. He instantly put his finger in his mouth so blood wouldn't drip everywhere then asked himself if he would be able to weave his way through the spikes and be okay. After carefully planning out where he wanted to step, being careful to note that the path went uphill, he hopped his way around them, and sighed when he came out unharmed.

He had to take a second to catch his breath, but when he did he turned to his right and followed that path. Much like the one he saw earlier, all it did was contain steps that went down to another metal switch. However, hen he looked over the edge of the cliff, he realized that there was another level which contained a treasure chest. Knowing he couldn't get the previous chest, he wanted to get this one, or at least see if he would be able to without falling. As carefully as could, and avoiding the spikes that were on the lower level, he climbed down and cautiously walked to the chest. The ground sounded solid, so he knelt down and picked the lock of the chest.

He frowned when there was only some gold in there, but he decided he might as well take it anyway. Moving on then…he thought as he followed that path around. Jumping around the spikes that were on that level, he realized that he was on the lower part of the level that he climbed down from. He knew that the spot that he climbed down from would be too steep to climb back up, so he walked around to find a spot that would be easier. Once he did, he made his way back up and smiled when he realized that he was already past the first set of spikes that he encountered.

Knowing he went right from the spikes the first time, he now went left, discovering a staircase. He walked down the stairs, feeling the temperature in the air rise about fifty degrees. The lava pool was the source of the heat, and Locke knew that he had to get out of this room as quickly as possible or else he was going to dehydrate. Besides the lava, the other thing Locke didn't like about this area was all the bridges.

"Okay, let's think about this," he said before stepping on the wood. "Wood over lava. The wood breaks, I die. This is going to be fun." He quickly walked on the bridge, praying that it wouldn't break, then the bridge stopped. Locke's jaw dropped at what he saw; several stepping stones that were several feet apart in the lava. "You have got to be shitting me here!" Even though the stones were a few feet in diameter, he didn't feel comfortable jumping on them. Wiping the sweat off of his forehead with the back of his hand, he looked around and noticed that there wasn't another way to get to the other side.

Slowly inhaling, he realized he didn't have a choice and began hopping from stone to stone. When he reached the other side, he felt his face and neck, let out a nervous laugh, and in disbelief said, "I'm alive!" He walked along the small stretch of land that he arrived on and almost screamed when he saw that he had to do the same thing to get to the other bridge on the opposite side.

Sweat was dripping down his face in buckets and was starting to get into his eyes. He moved his wet bangs out of his face and stretched the sleeve of his shirt to wipe the sweat off. His lips were starting to feel chapped from the excruciating heat, so he knew he had to get out of there. Unfortunately the rocks were the only way to solid land. He took a second to prepare himself then hopped from rock to rock again.

When he reached the opposite side of the cave, he kept walking in hopes that he would reach another area of the cave that wasn't surrounded by lava. He was really starting to regret the fact that he didn't bring any water with him when he felt how parched he was. More of a reason to get this done as quickly as possible…He thought, exiting the area he was in.

The air was much cooler in the next cavern, so when he reached a staircase leading to another metal switch, he sat down to catch his breath. Leaning back and resting on his elbows, he looked up at the ceiling and muttered, "How big is this damn cave? It was created when the continents shifted so it can't go on forever! Or…can it?" His own thought process made him groan and rest his head against his knees. "I'm getting too old for this."

Just as he was about to get up, he heard the sound of water, like it was rushing somewhere. Lifting up his head, he narrowed his eyes and looked around, trying to find where it was coming from. He didn't see any sight of water, but he did see that there was another staircase beyond a wall that was composed of large boulders. Maybe the sound was just my imagination, but if I can get over those boulders somehow, I can make it up those stairs…He thought as he brushed his damp hair out of his face. With a shrug, he walked down the stairs and decided it was best to keep moving.

Walking through the path, he heard something from behind him; a low growl. His whole body stiffened and he turned on his heel, afraid of what he was going to see. He jumped back and pulled out his dagger when he discovered that he was face to face with a huge red dragon.

"Oh shit!" He shouted, moving out of the way of the dragon's teeth just in time. He knew he had to get to higher ground and quickly. That would be the only way he would have the opportunity to find a way over the boulder wall, run away, and not die. There's no way I'd take on a dragon by myself! I would need at least one other person here with me!

He ran around the dragon and up a different set of stairs, confusing the creature and making it turn around. Before it had a chance to snap at Locke again, he jumped off the stairs and struck the dragon in its back with his dagger. It howled in pain and stumbled back slightly, but it wasn't enough to make the dragon lose sight of its prey. Feeling his pulse race, he tightened his grip on his dagger and went to charge again, but this time the dragon whipped around too quickly and nailed Locke in the chest with its tail.

Locke went flying with a yell and landed hard on his back, knocking the wind out of him. He groaned as he stood up, but almost laughed in relief when he realized that the dragon knocked him over the boulder wall. Finding his strength, he climbed up the stairs and saw that the dragon was looking for him, and did not look happy. Steam was coming out of its nose and it was still growling as it panned the area. Trying to sneak away, Locke walked further away from the dragon and saw that there was a big rock wall in his way.

Holding up his hand, he was just about to perform a spell on it when the dragon let out a loud roar. Locke gasped and looked over his shoulder to see the dragon leap over the brick wall after him again. Trying not to panic, he held his hand up and tried to concentrate on getting to the other side, but he was running out of time. As a last resort, he dug in his pocket and grabbed out his warp stone and pressed it to the wall.

The glow engulfed him and let him warp through the thick wall without getting singed by the fiery breath of the dragon. He was now panting, but he knew that he was safe and could continue without becoming a meal. Exhaling in small puffs, he rested his head against the wall that he just warped through so he would be able to walk without his legs giving way under him.

After a few seconds, he looked in the room that the he was now in and saw steam rising from the ground. Probably more lava…He thought as he walked through the walkway and into the open room. When he reached the side of the cliff, he found out that it was just the ground, but it had small puddles in it. Like the lava was cooled down somehow…

Shrugging, he continued walking toward a bridge that connected the bit of land that he was on with a little island. He squinted and saw that there was a small treasure chest on the far end of the island and his heart skipped a beat. It has to be…

He broke out into a sprint, forgetting the fact that he was still panting from the run in with the dragon. He didn't have proof of what was in the chest, but instinct told him it was what Xane told him about. When he reached the chest, he fell to his knees, found his collection of picks, and began working the lock. He felt the tears form in his eyes when the faint 'click' of the lock reached his ears. Without wasting any time, he pulled the lock off and opened the chest. There was only one thing in the chest; a small green stone. Tears formed in his eyes at his discovery and he slowly reached his hand in the box to touch it.

Taking it in his hand, he sat down and couldn't take his eyes off of it. It's true…I've found it…He thought to himself, letting a tear slip down his cheek. More tears of happiness followed the first one as he trailed his fingers over the stone, in complete disbelief in what this meant.

He wasn't sure how long he was sitting there, but the minutes only felt like seconds as he thought of bringing Rachel back to life. "Okay," he whispered and stood up. "Thinking about it isn't going to help. Time to go back to Kohlingen…"

"Locke!" He whipped around at the sound of the voice and saw Terra, Sabin, Edgar, and Celes rushing up to him.

"Terra?" He asked, rubbing his eyes free of tears before looking at them in surprise. "Goddesses, is that you?"

"And us too!" Edgar said cheerfully, giving Locke a rather large hug.

"I missed you too, Edgar, but get off," Locke said with a chuckle and pushed him off. Clenching his fist around the gem in his hand, he smiled at them all. "It's so good to know that you're all safe!"

"I believe we have to say the same about you! We were worried sick," Celes said quietly as they all walked closer to him. "We heard that you were spotted somewhere in this area, so we tried to find you."

With a snap of his fingers, Locke exclaimed, "I should've known you were in here when I heard all the water go down! How the hell did you do that?"

Sabin laughed and said, "You know us! We managed to do that after we fought a dragon."

"Good, I'm glad you got rid of that bastard," Locke said with a nervous chuckle. "That damn thing almost bit my head off. I'm thankful that I can think under pressure, that's for sure."

Terra narrowed her eyes and slowly inhaled. "What's that in your hand?"

As Locke uncurled his fingers, he held up his hand and replied, "Behold! A legendary relic that can restore life!"

The other four walked closer to him to look at it. Sabin rubbed his forehead with his fingers and said, "That looks like…magicite…"

"Correct!" Locke proudly beamed, trying to make the tears in his eyes go away. "Legend has it that ages ago, the Phoenix was turned into stone. My grandma told me about it when I was younger, but I forgot about it to be honest with you. That is, until earlier when I received a lead and a reminder that many legends are based on facts."

Edgar put his hand on Locke's shoulder, understanding the situation. He smiled and said, "All those years. You finally found something."

"Yeah," he replied quietly with a small chuckle. He ran his fingers over it and sighed. "This has some major cracks in it though. I…fear it may have lost its power over time."

"I can feel it," Terra said eerily, closing her eyes. "Its power is waning."

"Damn," Locke whispered, shaking his head. "I wasn't able to save Rachel. I hate this feeling like I've lost all sense of purpose, but I just can't help it. My life will have no meaning until I can right this terrible wrong."

Celes and Sabin exchanged looks then looked back at Locke. "Rachel…" Celes began, brushing her bangs out of her face. "The girl from Kohlingen? The one who's house we were at last year?"

With a nod, Locke said, "Yeah."

"We were actually on our way there," Sabin mentioned with a shrug. "Well, we were going to go there if we didn't find you here. I don't know if we're going to go there still since we did find you—"

Edgar elbowed his brother in the stomach and said, "Of course we're going to go there. That is, if you want to go there, Locke."

"We're going there, end of discussion," Celes said forcefully, subtly dropping a hint on them.

"Oh, you guys don't have to make a special stop for me," Locke interrupted, not sure if he wanted to go to Kohlingen with anyone else. "It's not like it's an extremely long walk or anything. I can go by myself, it's not a problem."

"Not an extremely long walk?" Celes asked, putting a hand on his arm. "Locke, are you okay? Kolingen is basically on the other side of the world. It would take you several days by ship."

Edgar chuckled and pointed out, "And we all know how much you love to sail."

"It'll only take us a few hours by airship," Celes continued with a nod. "Wouldn't you rather do that?"

"Well…" Locke muttered, looking back down at the stone in his hand. "I…"

"Will you come with us?" Terra asked, hope in her voice. "Only as far as Kohlingen if you want to."

"I guess that'll be the best option," he replied with a nod, not taking his eyes off the magicite. "Let's go."


	42. The Power Of The Phoenix

**This is another chapter that I've had written for about five or six months. It took me a while to write, but I like it a lot…and it does pretty much wrap up the Locke and Rachel story. Yay! (Does this part of the game make anyone else cry? I weep like a baby every time!) It's not the longest chapter in the world, but it's long enough to get my point across and to have all the action that I wanted to occur. (I personally like the ending. Locke's too damn cute) Okay…here ya go!)**

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**42. The Power Of The Phoenix**

"There's Kohlingen!" Terra cried out above the wind as Locke looked where she pointed. "We'll be there within two minutes. Setzer'll probably land us a few feet away when we arrive."

Locke nodded and didn't say anything as he walked from the deck to the bridge of the airship, for he couldn't find it in him to speak. Instead, he reached into his pocket and pulled out the Phoenix magicite and looked at it. Not only had it been several months since he had returned to Kohlingen, but it felt surreal to him that he had actually found a way to bring her back.

"You okay, man?" Sabin asked as he put his hand on Locke's shoulder. Without looking up from the magicite, he nodded. "You don't look it, but I guess I'm gonna take your word for it."

"Who's going with you into town, Locke?" Celes asked as she put her hands on a window sill and watched the world pass from underneath them, coming closer as Setzer brought the airship down to the ground.

"No one," he replied simply, wrapping his fingers around the magicite to protect it. He slowly brought his head up and saw that everyone was staring at him in disbelief. "What is it?"

Terra took a step forward and took it upon her to speak for the rest of the people on the bridge of the airship. "Locke, we haven't seen you in so long and now you want to run into town without the rest of us? What's going on?"

"I appreciate your concern, you guys, but I have to deal with this myself," he answered as the airship landed. "I believe that I've told you before that this is the one topic that I don't like talking about, so I would appreciate some privacy about it."

"Let him be," Edgar added with a nod toward Locke. Locke smiled in gratitude for he knew that Edgar was aware of the entire situation and knew how much it was eating away at him. "Go on, Locke."

"Please say that you want us to wait for you," Celes said quietly as she turned to him and brushed her hair out of her face. "Like Terra said, we just found you again. We don't want to lose you."

"I'll come back, don't worry," he reassured her and started to walk toward the dock of the airship. "This is just something that I need to deal with myself. I'll be back in a little while."

Everyone else nodded as he exited the airship and walked into town. The second that he knew he wasn't in view of everyone else, he practically ran to the Patriarch's house with the small stone in his hand, not thinking of anything else but his destination. Without knocking, he flung open the door to see the Patriarch sitting at his table, deeply reading a book. He calmly looked over at Locke, his eyes settling on the magicite that he was holding.

"I found it," Locke stated as he shoved the magicite into the old man's hands. Realizing that he still had his pack, he dropped it on the floor and waited for the Patriarch's reaction. The emotions running through him were a mixture of excitement and nervousness, for this is the day he waited for for over a year. He wasn't sure if he wanted to laugh or cry, so he swallowed the lump in his throat to remain stoic. "I've…I've been searching for something and I finally found it."

"Is this what I've heard people whispering about lately? Is this…magicite?" Locke nodded and exhaled through his mouth as the Patriarch looked at the green gem and twirled it around his fingers. There was a frown on his face and Locke knew it was over the condition that the magicite was in. He handed the magicite back to Locke and rose to his feet. "Well, let's see what we can do about this. Follow me."

Locke felt his hands sweat as he followed the old man down the steps to where Rachel lay. He slowly walked over to her and knelt down next to the bed, holding in the tears that longed to flow out of his eyes. With a sniff, he gently brushed the side of her face with his fingertips, feeling the softness of her skin.

"Rachel, I'm here," he whispered as he held up the magicite. Although he knew she couldn't see it, he still wanted to talk to her. "I wasn't going to give up on you. I was going to do everything in my power, and I think I'm able to help you now."

"Well, are you gonna use it or not?" Locke whipped his head up at the Patriarch to see the small smile that was on his face. He knew that the man wasn't trying to rush Locke along, but wanted to see if the magicite would actually work. "Talking to her isn't going to help."

"Uh, yeah," Locke replied, slightly flustered as he closed his eyes and held up the magicite. He wasn't sure if he was going to have to say anything, but the magicite began to emit an eerie light, answering his question.

He watched the small light gradually grow, illuminating the entire room. Locke's pulse began to race, and then the light started to dim again, much like an ember of a fire.

"No!" Locke cried out at the magicite, almost as if he were scolding it. Clenching his fist around it, he shook his fist as he yelled. "Don't go out on me! Please! Do something!"

The Patriarch took a few steps closer to Locke and put his hand on his shoulder to console him. "You have to realize that that thing is probably over a thousand years old, and apparently wasn't taken care of in the way that it should've been." Locke nodded and bowed his head in disappointment. "If only the magicite didn't bear those deep cracks. If you ask me, I think you've been wasting your time, young man!"

"Yeah." He kept his eyes on her and reached into one of his pockets. Pulling out the ring that he had kept with him since the day he brought her to the patriarch, he carefully slid it on her finger and kissed her hand. "Rachel, I'm so sorry. I…I won't give up though! I'll keep looking! I will find another way to bring you back! I don't care if it's the last thing that I do, but I have to prove to you that—"

Before he was able to finish his sentence, the magicite flashed a blinding light throughout the room. Locke jumped in surprise, letting the magicite leave his hand and float above Rachel. His breathing was rapid as the magicite continued to blink and then sent a ray of magical energy into Rachel's body.

"Rachel!" He cried out, shielding his eyes from the light.

"Uwaaaa!" The Patriarch screamed as he ducked behind the headboard of the bed that Rachel was lying in. "Get down! The power is too great! The magicite's gonna shatter!"

Instead of running for cover, Locke simply bowed his head. "I don't care. If it shatters, I hope it kills me in the process. If I can't find anything to bring her back, life isn't—"

"Locke…"

Locke whipped his head back up to see the owner of the voice and almost cried when he saw Rachel flutter her eyes open. Although he opened his mouth to say something, nothing came out. Tears formed in his eyes as she turned her head and looked at him in the eyes.

"Locke, is it really you?" Locke nodded his head as a small smile crept on her face. Her beautiful eyes blinked as she gazed up at him, then her entire body convulsed as she let out a sickening cough.

"Rachel!" Locke exclaimed, his eyes widening. Avoiding the magicite that was hovering in the air, he put his hands on her shoulders and sat down on the bed next to her to be closer to her. As quickly as she started to cough, she stopped and continued to smile. Locke put his hand over his heart then moved his head to give her a kiss.

Before his lips were able to meet hers, she lifted up a hand and placed her finger over them, confusing him. "Locke…I've dreamed of seeing you."

"I'm here, Rachel," he squeaked out as her finger moved from his lips to the side of his face. Holding in his tears, he felt her palm cup his cheek and she brushed his face with her fingers. "I'll always be here."

She let out a breathy sigh and Locke could tell that it was labored. "It's been so long since I've seen you. I wanted to hear your voice."

"Rachel…" Locke finally let a tear escape one of his eyes and it trickled down his cheek and over Rachel's fingers before it hit his shirt.

"Why are you crying?" She asked him as he shook his head and smiled. "Please don't cry."

Instead of replying to her, he lifted his own hand up and placed it over hers. Her small hand felt so frail in his own, reminding him of what happened after the bridge accident. Again she coughed, moving her hand away from his and placing it on her own chest.

"The Phoenix has given me so little time," she explained as another tear escaped Locke's eyes. "I have to leave again soon…"

"What?" He asked, his voice full of panic as he brushed her hair with his fingers. "Rachel, no!"

"But I have something I must tell you…" Locke bowed his head again and let her continue speaking. "Locke, with you I was so happy. In the instant that the accident occurred, I thought only of you…and the joy you brought me."

Locke shook his head and without looking up at her, he muttered, "Rachel, I failed you. I should've stayed by your side and I didn't. I'm so sorry."

"No, no," she whispered, tilting his head up with her forefinger again. Her speech was slowing down as she began to run out of energy, the phoenix clearly fading away. "Stop thinking that. You did everything that you could. Thank you, Locke. I'll never forget you…"

At the end of her sentence, her eyes started to roll to the back of her head and she closed her eyes. With a gasp, Locke stood up and ran to the other side of the bed out of panic. "Rachel!"

Even though she didn't open her eyes or her mouth, her voice echoed throughout the room, carried around by the power of the phoenix. "I have to go now…I'll always love you. You must now cast off the anguish you've been harboring inside for so long." Locke listened without saying a word, nodding occasionally and letting the tears slowly cascade down his face. "Today I set your heart free. You must learn to love yourself again, and regain your self respect."

The white light that was still emitting from the magicite started to turn a pale shade of orange and surrounded both Rachel and Locke. Locke frantically looked around and saw that Rachel was starting to rise off of the bed and into the air. He tried to grab for her, but his hand rushed right through her, causing him to gasp.

"Phoenix! Be reborn again!" Her voice echoed louder, almost turning into a supernatural sounding shriek, sending a shiver up Locke's spine. A strong gust of wind came out of nowhere and whipped his hair and clothing around, even though they were indoors and no windows were open. The pages in the books that were in the basement fluttered around and several of the herbs that surrounded the room fell over, the vases breaking as they hit the floor. "And give your power…to Locke!"

"Rachel!" Locke yelled over the wind as the orange glow grew so brightly that it transformed Rachel into a large bird; the phoenix. He watched in horror as the bird let out a screech and flew away, disappearing into thin air.

The wind died down and the room returned to the normal color again, the only noise from a few rustling pages settling down. His gaze remained on the ceiling, still in disbelief that she disappeared right in front of his eyes and he wasn't able to do anything about it.

The Patriarch stood up from where he was hiding, startling Locke in the process. He leaped backward and placed his hand over his heart. "Goddesses, you scared the shit out of me."

"My apologies," the old man stated, his face completely pale. He looked down at the bed to see the small, green magicite lying on the white sheets, so he bent over to pick it up. Locke watched his every move, then held out his hand to take it back. "I suppose you'll want this."

"Yeah," Locke muttered as he looked at it, running his fingers over the large cracks. "I…Yeah. Just…yeah."

With a chuckle, the patriarch put his hand on Locke's shoulder. "Well, you said that you were going to find a way to bring her back and you did. Are you going to be all right?"

Locke nodded and attempted a smile as he continued to inspect the stone. "I think I just need to get out of here for a little while. Thank you…so much." Locke reached into his pockets and grabbed out several gold pieces. "I believe I owe you these for taking care of her for so long."

"Nonsense," the patriarch said, closing Locke's fist over the money and gently pushing his hand away from him. "I did all that I could. I just wish I could've done more."

Raising his eyebrows, he put the gold back in his pockets and started to walk back up the stairs. When he got about halfway, he turned again to look at the bed that Rachel had laid in for over a year. He let out an exhale and walked the rest of the way up, almost running into Celes.

"Locke…" She said slowly as she looked down at the floor. She was the only one in the Patriarch's house and he could tell that she was uncomfortable disobeying his wishes to be alone. "I didn't mean to eavesdrop, but I had to know what was going on with you. I was so worried."

"Now you know," he replied simply as he put the magicite into his pocket. "There was nothing to be worried about."

"I'm sorry," she said as she took a few steps closer to where he was standing. He lifted his head up, yet didn't look at her. Her apology wasn't for being worried, it was for the entire situation of what he went through.

"Thanks," he replied as he kept his eyes fixated on the wall so he wouldn't have to face her. "I'm okay. Yeah. I'm-I'm okay."

She dug the toe of her shoe into the floor, tracing the grain of the wood. "Are you sure? I mean, it looks like you've been crying and that's not really the universal sign of being okay."

"Honestly, I feel lighter than air." He exhaled and realized that he was telling the truth. "I feel like the world has been lifted off my shoulders and I can breathe again. It's funny, really. She was right. I have been harboring my anguish inside of me for so long that I forgot what it's like to actually live and be myself. I think it's about time that I…find myself again."

"Well, since you said that you'll protect me, I guess it's only fair that I look after you and assist you in your self exploration," Celes explained with a giggle. Locke looked at her over his shoulder and had to smile back at her, raising his eyebrows. "That wasn't me trying to come on to you, but I guess it came out that way. I was just trying to help."

"Thanks, but from here on, I'll be all right." His trademark smirk returned to his face as he opened the door and inhaled the warm spring air. With an exhale, he turned back toward Celes and pointed toward the direction of where the Falcon was. "Let's go! We have places to be and asses to kick!"

"Yay!" She cheered with a little jump as she chased after him and they ran through the streets of Kohlingen. Without warning, Locke stopped dead in his tracks and turned back toward the Patriarch's house. "What's up?"

"Shit, hold on!" He saw her blink in confusion before he bolted back to the house, grabbed his pack, then ran back out toward her.

"Um, what is it?" She asked as he winked at her and opened the bag to show her several items, armor, and weapons. "Okay, I see. But, what are they?"

"The treasures of the Phoenix Cave!" He explained as he handed her a Flame Shield. "I know that you're a closet pyromaniac, so I'll let you have this one."

"Gee thanks," she replied facetiously as she took the shield and looked at it. "That's very sweet of you though."

"Well, I didn't do it intentionally, but since you're right here, I figured I would try to be a gentleman." She made a face at him and he returned it. "If you don't want it, I do, so make up your mind now, woman."

"I think you're finding yourself, all right," she retorted in response of his playful manner. "But it's okay. You're more fun this way."

"You better believe it!" He tossed his hair in the wind then faced the direction of the entrance of town again. "Right, let's move out! We have an appointment with Kefka!"


	43. Epilogue

**Wow, this is surreal. I never thought I'd see the day when this fic would be finished and posted. I didn't think it would take me nearly a year to write…but it was worth it. This fic is exactly the way I want it. I took about four months to edit it (the entire thing) and it all works. Everything fits. This is my favorite thing that I have ever written by far… and I feel quite accomplished because I've always wanted to write something that deals with Rachel and Locke because he's my favorite Final Fantasy character ever, plus nothing between them was ever really explained. (And how fun is it that I finished it on his birthday! I'm such a fangirl, I love it!) I'm very happy with how this fic turned out and I appreciate you all for reading it… thank you thank you thank you! Without further ado…here's the epilogue. It's actually much, much longer than an epilogue is supposed to be, but whatever. It just basically sums everything up. NOW all your questions will be answered. Believe me, if you find a loose end that I didn't tie, you better email me and inform me of it so I can fix it! Lol. I am extremely happy with the way the epilogue ended up…I always have a hard time starting and finishing fics, but I think it worked out rather well. (Plus, I love the beginning of the Epilogue…lol…Poor Terra!) Oh yeah, one more thing…this chapter in no way implies any kind of LockexCeles pairing. Just so you know. So…thanks again! **

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**Epilogue**

"Ah ha! That's right, bitches! Full house!" Edgar cried out as he slammed his cards down face up on the table. Locke and Terra groaned as they threw their cards in the middle of the table and Setzer calmly took a sip from the mug that was in front of him.

"I had nothing to begin with," Terra informed them as she crossed her legs and sighed. "I should've folded before we even started."

Locke chuckled as he looked over at Sabin, who was still looking at his cards, his jaw dropped. He gently nudged Terra as he spoke. "Hey, I thought we made the rule of 'no magic' at the table. I think you gave Sabin a paralyzing spell and that's called 'cheating.'"

She rolled her eyes at him and playfully scoffed at him. "Oh, shut up. I did nothing of the sort." Waving her hand in front of Sabin's face, she said, "Sabin, the hand is over."

"I know, but this is just un-fucking-believable!" He exclaimed in disbelief. After a second of silence, he showed Edgar his cards. "I had two pair, you son of a bitch! I thought I was gonna win this time!"

"Watch what you're saying for that is your mother you're badmouthing as well," Edgar quipped as he reached for the pile of gold on the center of the table. Before he was able to grab any gold, Setzer placed his hand on Edgar's and shook his finger.

"Hup bup bup, not so your fast, your majesty, I have yet to show everyone my cards," he warned with a chuckle. "Just for you, King Edgar; a Royal Flush."

Everyone laughed at the dumbstruck look on Edgar's face as Setzer slowly turned around his cards to reveal them. In defeat, Edgar threw his cards down on top of the others' and sadly watched as Setzer took the gold.

"You sly bastard," he mumbled under his breath and Sabin patted him on the back. "I know, I know. It's only a game."

Setzer threw a few coins on the table, then gathered up the cards to shuffle them. "All right, who's in for another round?"

Edgar and Sabin threw more gold onto Setzer's as Locke pushed his chair away from the table. "Sorry guys…and Terra…but I'm out."

"Nice save," Terra said as she smacked him on the chest. "However, I actually do feel like one of the guys today. I'm sitting around playing poker and watching you four drink beer. Now all I need to do is start up a manly conversation about who has a bigger sword."

"In what context?" Edgar asked as he looked down at his lap. Terra scoffed and threw a few gold pieces at him as everyone else laughed.

"I'd win that contest anyway," Sabin chimed in with a cocky smile giving Terra a reason to make a disgusted face at him. "There's not even a reason to have a competition when it comes to this subject. I mean, look at the size of my feet! You know what they say about guys with big feet!"

"I'm not hearing this! La la la la," she said as she covered her ears with her hands and started to hum.

"I think we should change the stakes to say the winner has to pay Terra's therapy bills," Locke said as he gently patted Terra on the top of her head, causing the three other men to laugh even harder.

After a few seconds, she looked between the four men and took her hands partly off of her ears. "Is it okay to let my virgin ears be exposed to the world now?"

"For the time being." Edgar smiled at the younger woman as he chuckled. He looked over at Locke, who was shaking his head at everyone. "Anyway Locke, why aren't you going to play with us anymore?"

"Well, first of all, I'm now officially broke. I definitely learned why it is not the smartest idea to play poker against a professional gambler," Locke looked over at Setzer, who proudly smiled as he shuffled the cards. "I always used to kick the Quantz guys' asses when we used to play, but now I know how it feels."

"Sore loser," Setzer said as he began dealing out the cards to everyone else.

"Secondly," he continued with a smile, ignoring Setzer's comment and shaking his head. "I think I need some fresh air."

"Do you need some company?" Sabin asked with a joking flirtatious tone, adding a wink as well. Everyone laughed as Locke raised an eyebrow. "Remember…big feet!"

"Um, I'll be just fine by myself," he replied. He rubbed his forehead with his fingertips and watched Terra let out a yelp and cover her ears again. "I'll be up on the deck if you need me."

The others turned back to the card came as Locke opened the door and climbed onto the airship's deck. Celes was piloting the airship, and he watched as she focused to get them to their next destination safely. Smiling to himself, he walked over to her.

"Hey."

She jumped in surprise as she whipped around to face him. Locke was surprised that she didn't jerk the controls at the same time, but he was quite thankful that she had good control.

"My goddesses, I need to put a little bell around your neck or something! Scaring people like that! Who does that? Honestly!" She exclaimed, slightly panting as she tried to catch her breath.

"I pride myself on my ability to be stealthy," he said with a shrug and put his hands in his pockets. "Ya gotta be when you're a treasure hunter."

"All right, I'll buy that excuse." She smiled as she faced the bow of the airship to concentrate on her flying again.

"So, in case you're wondering, you're missing out on some quality entertainment downstairs," Locke mentioned as he pointed to the stairwell. She gave him a quizzical look, so he explained. "We're all scarring Terra for life down there. She's going to need therapy for twelve years now."

"She was in the control of Kefka for 18 years," Celes stated, her tone of voice remaining serious. "I think that's enough of a reason to send the poor girl to therapy."

"True," Locke replied, sensing that Celes wasn't in the mood for humor. "You okay? You seem kinda short with me."

She moved her gaze from her flying back to him and smiled. "Oh yeah, I'm sorry. I'm just trying to concentrate on flying this thing and not kill everyone in the process."

"You're doing a great job so far," he informed her as he began to walk closer to one of the windows. He looked over his shoulder at her, who was looking down at her hands. "But I don't think that's the only thing that is on your mind. What's up, Celes?"

"I didn't know you knew the Baron VanLente and his daughter," she said quietly, causing Locke to turn on his heel at her. "I, heh, really didn't know that she was the girl who haunted your dreams."

Locke pursed his lips and swallowed the lump that was slowly rising in his throat. "Um, yeah. She was killed in the attack on Kohlingen that happened about a year ago. That's actually the main reason why I hate the Empire. They've ruined everything for everyone. I take it that you know of her family because of the Clemix diamond?"

"Yeah," Celes replied as Locke turned back toward the window. "I wasn't there the day that Kefka ordered the soldiers to attack Kohlingen, I was still in Maranda. However, I definitely did hear about it. Everyone did when he presented the Esper to Gestahl. Gestahl had a meeting with the entire army and explained how magic was going to be the key, blah blah blah. I didn't know what happened to the girl, but I did hear the Baron's fate. I'm so sorry."

"I can't get over the way the world looks now," Locke stated, adverting the conversation away from the day that Rachel died. "The water is what scares me the most."

"I'm sorry, I know you don't want to talk about this and I didn't mean to bring it up," Celes said quickly as she noticed the look on Locke's face. "I just…"

"No, don't worry about it." He shrugged, interrupting her. "I know I was only able to see her again for a minute, but as strange as this sounds, everything seems to be brighter to me now."

"You just had the burden of something that has been haunting you for years taken off your shoulders. Of course the sun shines a bit brighter on your life." He turned around to look at her, happy that she had a very good point. "So, how have you been holding up?"

"I'm feeling pretty shitty still, but I'll be all right in the long run and I guess that's what matters," he said with a small smile and an exhale. He was relieved that his response was confident. "I mean, everything just feels more resolved now. _Finally_, you know?"

"So now you're telling me that's all you needed?" She asked as she raised an eyebrow. "Now you won't be bitchy? No one likes you when you're bitchy. Mainly me."

"Very funny," he stated, although he knew that she was right. "I've been tormenting myself for so long. I was so angry….angry at myself for my weakness. I just needed her to tell me that she still loved me and forgave me for what happened. I guess that is all I needed. Sad, isn't it?"

"Why would it be?" She looked at the map on the wall to make sure that she was going in the right direction, then slightly turned the wheel to the left. "Sometimes resolution is all we need in life."

"What about you?" He asked as she gave him a quizzical look. "I mean, you don't exactly have resolution in your situation."

"My resolution will be sticking my sword so far up Kefka's ass that he'll be able to taste the steel," Celes responded with a very large smile, causing Locke to chuckle at her. "As soon as we get to his tower, which is our next destination, mind you, I will do said event."

He leaned against the wall and crossed his ankles. "By hearing you speak, you would never guess that you're only 18 years old."

"You remind me of someone else that I know." She said with a breathy laugh. "The way you talk, the way you evaluate everything, all the way down to the treasure hunter aspect."

"I'll take that as a compliment," Locke replied with a stately nod, knowing exactly who she was referring to. "Your brother, Xane Riley, is one of the best men I know."

She whipped her head up at him. "X…Xane? You knew him?"

"He and I go way back," Locke began to explain, the surprised look still on Celes' face. "We were in Quantz together, that's how we met. Damn, he hated me for a very long time, but then we eventually got to be very close. As a matter of fact, I was with him the day that he was arrested."

"Oh!" Her look of shock turned into one of enlightenment. "I _knew_ that you looked familiar! From the day that you rescued me, I've been trying to figure out where I knew you from! Thank you! I know now!"

"That's how I knew you as well," he clarified for her. "I just didn't want to say anything."

"I haven't seen him since they shipped him off to Vector." She bowed her head and softened her voice. "That's…That's why I joined up again with Leo right before the world fell. I wanted to make sure that he was alive still. Unfortunately, Leo wasn't knowledgeable about what happened either."

"Why didn't you tell me that?" Locke asked her as he narrowed his eyes. "You didn't have to say that you had a brother if that was what you were worried about. You could've just said that you wanted to see if a friend was alive or something while we were in Albrook. Instead you just walked away from me that night. I was really worried about you."

"I should've told you and I didn't, I know," she replied. "Heh, I don't know why I didn't, but I just thought that I should keep my mouth shut."

"I saw him two days ago actually," he mentioned with a smirk, causing her to whip her head up again. "Before my two day boat trip to the Phoenix Cave."

"What? When? Where!" She asked frantically as she grabbed onto his vest. "Is he okay?"

"He was the one who told me about the Phoenix magicite in the first place," Locke began to explain, Celes' smile widening with every word he said. "He hurt his leg a while back, but otherwise, he's doing just fine. You should know by now that you don't have to worry about him. You worry too much."

"Xane told me a while ago that I need to live a little," she admitted as she shrugged her shoulders. "I guess he's right. I never really did have a childhood, but oh well. Too late to go back and change it."

"The only solution to that would be to actually start living your life now," Locke suggested as she shook her head. "Why not? You're still very young."

"I told you, I need resolution first," she clarified as she pulled out her sword and inspected it. "This has to be introduced to Kefka's ass before I can begin to enjoy whatever part of my youth I have left. I need to atone for what I did while I was a general."

"You're like me," he informed her as he watched her put her sword back by her side. "I don't want to tell you not to dwell on it, 'cause I know you will, but I can tell you that you'll feel better when this whole thing is over."

"I was a puppet for 18 years of my life," she said in disbelief and looked down at her fingernails. "I guess that's why Terra and I have so much in common. Well, I at least know what I did, and she doesn't. It must be nice to forget everything that had happened. I guess she has it easier."

"Maybe, but can we not?" Locke crossed his arms as he thought about it for a second. "Let's not bring up the amnesia thing, okay?"

"Oh, sorry," she replied quickly as she blushed a light crimson. She turned away from him for a second and he felt guilty.

"I didn't mean to snap at you," he explained as he put his hand on her shoulder. "Like I said before, I'll be okay in a while, but it's still a little sore spot in my memory and I'm imagining it will be for a while. I've been battling with everything for over two years, and now I know that I'll never be able to get her back."

"Well, you heard her," Celes said with a shrug and kept the grim look on her face, although Locke could tell that she was trying to conceal a smile. "Stop complaining and move on with your life."

"Ha, you're such a pain in the ass," he replied with a gentle shove to her shoulder. She let out a giggle and she pushed back at him.

"Bastard," she instinctively replied back. She clicked the airship into auto-pilot, put her hands on her hips and faced him. "You know, I could pull out my sword and beat you down with it. Go ahead, just tempt me."

"Oh, we're gonna play this game, are we?" He raised an eyebrow at her and she flashed him an innocent smile. "That's fine, I can handle it…" He trailed off and looked at her out of the corner of his eye, then added: "Traitor."

The word stung her slightly, but she let it roll off her shoulder as she thought of a come back. With a mischievous grin, she looked at him and said a word that was a low blow, yet so accurate. "Thief."

He screamed as he threw his hands up in the air in frustration. "That's _treasure hunter!"_

Celes could only double over in laughter over his reaction and tears started to brim in her eyes. "Just so we're clear, you are aware that is only a synonym to 'treasure hunter,' right?"

"Hey, there is a big difference," he clarified, trying to keep the angry look on his face. After a second of seeing Celes giggle, he smiled and shook his head. "All right, you think you're so funny, ha ha."

"Oh no, Locke, I don't think, I know!" Locke rolled his eyes and walked to the window once again. After a few minutes of silence, she put her hand over one of her pockets then looked back over at him. "Hey, Locke."

"Yeah?" He questioned as he turned toward her once again. Seriousness was on her face as she reached into her pocket for something. "What is it?"

"The reason why I was thinking about the Baron VanLente and his daughter..." She trailed off, not taking her hand out of her pocket. "Well, I've, um, had this for quite some time."

Locke looked at her with wide eyes, afraid of what she was going to take out of her pocket. Turning her head to the side, she presented her hand in front of him, her fist tightly clenched around something inside. "Are you going to show me what it is?"

To answer his question, she turned her fist palm up, and slowly loosened her grip. It was the Clemix diamond. "Xane was the one who actually told me about it when he was locked up in Jidoor before he was sent to Vector. He intrigued me, so I went into the basement to get a better look at it. I knew the code because Kefka never changed it, so I was able to walk right in without having to break down the door. Of course, I didn't know that it had any connection to your life; I grabbed it as I heard Kefka and some of the soldiers talking about poisoning Doma. I was curious to what they were saying and became so interested in the conversation that I forgot that I was holding onto it. I must've absentmindedly put it in my pocket when Kefka saw that I was eavesdropping."

"It's just as I remembered it," he whispered, taking it in his hand and inspecting it closely.

"I think you should have it. None of us really need it." Celes smiled and nodded at him, giving him a pat on the shoulder.

He looked up at her and weakly smiled. "Thanks, Celes." He wanted to verbalize his gratitude more, but those were the only words that he was able to think of.

"You're welcome," she replied, folding her arms across her chest. "I won't even tell the others if you don't want me to."

Nodding his head, he opened up the door to go onto the deck of the airship, not taking his eyes off of the magicite that he had in his hands. _This damn thing cost me the most important thing in my life…_He thought as he reached the railing and looked down, realizing that the ocean was directly underneath the airship. Locke closed his eyes and remembered what Rachel said to him on his 24th birthday when they were at the Opera House.

"Again with the damn diamond. I would love to throw it in the bottom of the ocean so the world wouldn't have to fight over it…"

Just as quickly as he shut his eyes, he opened them, feeling the painful burn of tears that he held in. He gritted his teeth, tightened up his grip, then threw the diamond as far as he could. Resting his arms on the railing, he watched it sparkle as it reflected the final rays of the sunset before it hit the water. As the wind whipped through his hair, he quietly whispered, "Goodbye, Rachel…"


End file.
